The Truth Behind His Smiles
by Lyra Mae Rose
Summary: Tenma is always smiling around everyone, giving them courage and hope. So no one expected him to have very dark secrets. What will happen when they found out about it, tried to confront it, and also learn about his past? ON HIATUS
1. Where It All Began

The raindrops poured down rapidly on the caravan with seemingly no intention to stop. Harsh wind blew the trees and plants from almost every direction and a thin fog was starting to form. Kariya witnessed through the small window as Mother Nature took control of the environment around them, making the situation more troublesome by the minute.

Kariya leaned forward to try and see anything besides the rain and fog. But after a few minutes of trying, the defender eventually gave up. The rain limited their field of vision, and the growing fog was making it worse. Kariya could barely see the big trees around them, let alone the road ahead.

Kariya groaned. Of all times Mother Nature had to throw a tantrum, it just happened to be when they were going home. As he came up with that thought, Kariya absentmindedly reflected back on the chain of events that eventually had led him and his friends to their difficult situation right now.

Three days ago, when the team was doing their morning practice, Otonashi-sensei suddenly came down to the field and told them that they had been invited to a friendly match against a skilled team in Okinawa in three days.

The team was, naturally, excited. It had been a while since they last played against another team. Sure, practice was fun and sometimes unpredictable (since Kidou gave them training menus that seemed to be out of this world), but doing it again and again would bore even the brightest of people – heck, even _Tenma_ was bored, and he was the brightest of the bunch! So, it was logical for the team to agree almost instantly.

Endou and Kidou also agreed to the idea. Both of them thought that this would be good for the team to put their skills to the test. Kariya recalled Kidou mentioning that they needed to update their data of the team as well. So a meeting, some planning plus a signed letter later, the team officially had something to do three days from now.

Then, the day of the match came. Kidou had told them earlier that he was going to stay back at Raimon, since there was still some paperwork he needed to do. And sadly, it couldn't be delayed any longer. So the only ones who came were the team, Endou, Haruna and the driver, Furukabu-san.

Everyone gathered at the school and quickly departed for Okinawa. They didn't bring that much stuff, just the same things they bring whenever there's a match and also some change of clothes.

The match, according to Kariya, was pretty quick. It wasn't a breeze, because the Okinawa team actually proved to be quite a challenge. Their hissatsu tactics, in particular, was a pain. But in the end, Raimon managed to win by a single point difference. All in all, it was a good experience for everyone.

What wasn't a good experience, though, was getting stuck on the side of the road on their way home.

Kariya rested his cheek against his palm and sighed. "And here, I was looking forward to the new video game I just bought yesterday." The boy muttered with a small pout.

"Cheer up, Kariya-kun." Kariya glanced to his right and saw his purple-haired friend, Hikaru, giving him a smile. "You can always play it tomorrow."

"Will we even be home tomorrow?" Kariya retorted with a skeptical tone.

"I'm sure we will." Hikaru replied confidently. "The rain's not going to last forever."

"Although that is true, Kageyama-kun, but the rain will continue until at least tomorrow morning." The two boys blinked at the voice and peeked above their seats to see Haruna, who was a few seats away from them.

The club advisor typed a few more things onto her laptop before adding, "And, the temperature is dropping by the minute." There was a glint of urgency in her eyes when she looked up from her laptop and said, "We have to find shelter quick."

"But, Okinawa's known for having little to no rain!" Sangoku retorted behind Haruna.

"Yes, exactly." Endou nodded as he stood beside the club advisor. "That's why when it _does_ rain, it comes at full force."

"This is strange, though." Haruna muttered before bringing her hand to her chin. "The weather report didn't say anything about rain in Okinawa."

Endou frowned, that was what he had thought as well. The rain just came out of the blue, leaving all of them unprepared. The coach took a quick glance around the caravan to see how his players were doing.

Most of them were obviously cold. The players slightly shivered while they were rubbing their arms. Some of them even chattered their teeth. The decreasing temperature also affected the managers as the coach spotted them hugging each other to make them warm.

Not liking the situation one bit, Endou stepped closer to Haruna and whispered, "Did you bring any blankets?"

Haruna gave him a regretful look and shook her head. "Unfortunately no, Endou-kun. I thought this was a short trip, so I didn't bring any."

Endou scowled at her answer. "Well, we need to find shelter eventually." Then, the coach turned to the front of the caravan and saw a certain driver looking through his window. "Furukabu-san, anything?"

"No, Endou-kun." Furukabu replied as he brought his hand above his squinted eyes while not looking away from what he was observing. "I can still see the road, but nothing else."

Endou didn't like what he was hearing, but he nodded nonetheless. "Alright."

Right now, the coach was at a loss of what to do. His students were getting cold, there was no shelter in sight, and the rain continued to pour down without a care in the world. Endou began to think that the raindrops were actually mocking him.

The brown-haired adult silently balled his fist as he desperately tried to think of a way out of this mess.

A few seats away from him, Tenma stared at his coach with clear concern. The brunet was actually one of the three people who weren't affected by the temperature at all. The other two were Shindou and Tsurugi, whom Tenma had no idea to why the cold didn't bother them.

Tenma lowered his head and frowned. To be honest, he knew of a way to get his friends to a shelter from the very beginning. The solution had arisen the minute Furukabu-san drove the caravan onto the side of the road.

Although, that…_shelter_ was a place Tenma personally preferred to avoid. It was a place he had never thought of returning to.

_But_, Tenma thought as he looked around and saw his friends shivering from the cold. _This is an emergency._

After a few minutes of serious deliberating, Tenma finally reached a decision and turned towards his coach. "Um, Coach Endou?"

Endou instantly broke out of his thinking phase and averted his gaze towards the team captain. "What is it, Tenma?"

Tenma seemed to hesitate for a second before he eventually smiled. "I think I can get us to a shelter."

Almost immediately, everyone's attention transferred towards the brunet. Tenma sweat-dropped as he could feel his friends staring at him. At the same time, Endou raised his eyebrows in slight surprise. "Really?"

"Yes, I was originally from Okinawa after all." Tenma nodded before glancing at their surroundings outside. "I know the roads here like the back of my hand."

"So, you can get us out of here?" Shinsuke asked beside him.

In response, Tenma gave his friend a nod and confidently said, "Yeah."

Shinsuke's eyes lit up and the defender pounced onto the brunet. "That's great, Tenma!"

Simultaneouly, most of the team sighed in relief, Endou included. "Alright, Tenma." The adult smiled and gestured the boy to come to the front of the caravan. "Where are we going?"

"My house." Tenma said as he got out of Shinsuke's grip and made his way to the seat beside Furukabu.

Endou blinked at the answer. "Your house?"

"Yeah." Tenma glanced back at his coach. "Fortunately, it's quite near."

"Are you sure your parents won't mind all of us staying, though?" Tenma turned to Tsurugi, who sat on the seat the brunet was passing by.

The striker had a frown on his face (like usual), but this time Tenma could see a glint of doubt on his face. Tsurugi stared at Tenma with a scrutinizing look, and it seemed like he could tell that something was off.

Tenma mentally smiled, it was just what he had expected from Tsurugi. Of course he'd notice something so quickly; the striker was one of the sharpest people in the team, after all.

That would be a bit troublesome to deal with later, though, since Tsurugi was a never-back-down-until-he-gets-what-he-wants kind of guy (or was that him?). In addition to that, the question Tsurugi just asked was…painfully ironic.

But, Tenma brushed those thoughts aside as he gave Tsurugi a smile and replied, "Don't worry. We won't be staying for long, anyway."

Tsurugi gave him an odd look, but Tenma quickly turned away before he could see it and continued to walk forward to the front. "Otonashi-sensei was right, the rain's not going to stop until tomorrow morning - I was raised here, Otonashi-san. I can tell just by seeing it - so we're just staying there for tonight."

Tsurugi narrowed his eyes at the boy. Tenma didn't give him a proper answer. Instead, the brunet avoided the question and said something else. Although it irritated the striker slightly, Tsurugi got to admit; Tenma's tactic was pretty clever. Anyone else wouldn't even notice that he dodged.

It did nothing to decrease Tsurugi's curiousity, however. And, the strange glint he saw in Tenma's eyes wasn't something he could just turn a blind eye to.

But before he could say anything, Nishiki suddenly intercepted Tenma and hugged the midfielder with all his might. "You're a lifesaver, Tenma! I thought I was going to freeze to death!" Nishiki cried out with a smile.

Tenma laughed nervously before wincing at how tight Nishiki was hugging him. "Y-Your welcome, Nishiki-senpai."

Meanwhile, Tsurugi just stared at the two boys with an unimpressed expression before sighing. Well, there goes his chance.

But the striker mentally shook his head and lied back on his seat; he would just have to keep a close eye on Tenma later. For now, he had to deal with this annoying Okinawa weather.

Honestly, if the rain were a person, he'd _love_ to kick it a few hundred times with a soccer ball.


	2. On The Way There

"Oh!" Tenma said. "I have to tell them that we're coming!" He quickly pulled out his green phone from his lower left pocket.

Out of curiosity, Hikaru peeked behind the brunet from his seat. He watched as Tenma pushed some numbers and dialed it. "Who are you calling, Tenma?" he asked.

Tenma turned around and winked, "Someone who's in charge of the house. I need to tell them to-" 'open the gates.' was what he wanted to say. But, he didn't. Instead, the brunet blinked and averted his gaze over to his phone.

Hikaru was confused from his sudden halt. He was about to ask Tenma what's wrong when the midfielder spoke. "Oh, hi…it's me, Tenma!"

…Turns out, Tenma halted because the number he dialed just answered. Hikaru sweat-dropped, "O-Oh, so that's why."

But, the forward still had a question. "Someone who's in charge of the house? Who?" Hikaru mumbled in confusion. He wanted to ask, but Tenma was currently talking to that 'someone'. He also thought that it was rude to disturb other people's conversations. Long story short, Hikaru was just too kind and too thoughtful.

Having no other options, the first-year turned to Shinsuke, hoping that he knew the answer. The small defender noticed him, but he shrugged and shook his head. He didn't know either.

"-…Okay, we'll be there in 5 minutes. See you!"

Both of them focused back on Tenma. He just finished talking to 'someone'. But, something that Tenma said caught their attention. They were about to question the brunet when Nishiki suddenly burst behind them. The sudden approach made the first-years scream in shock.

"5 MINUTES? Tenma, did you hear what you just said?" Nishiki yelled. Tenma blinked at his senior.

"Y-Yeah. Is there a problem, Nishiki-senpai?" he asked innocently. "You do want to get out of here soon, right?"

Nishiki's eyebrow twitched, "T-That's right, but still…! 5 minutes is just too fast!"

"Oh, so you want to go slower?"

"Wha-No! I want to go faster!"

"But, you said that 5 minutes is too fast."

"Yes! I-I mean, no! I mean…! ARGH!" Nishiki yelled in frustration. " I meant that it's not possible…!" Everyone sweat-dropped at the duo's awkward conversation. But, still. Nishiki should've explained it a little better.

Tenma was even more confused. He didn't have the slightest idea about where this 'conversation' was going. "Not possible? What do you mean, Nishiki-senpai?"

Nishiki sighed deeply. "Just look at our situation!" The second-year spread his arms wide.

"The rain's getting harder and the fog's getting thicker! That just made our limited vision even more limited!" Tenma had a feeling that sentence could be corrected, but he let it be. This was Nishiki after all.

"It's all right, Nishiki-senpai," Tenma said reassuringly. "I know the way. I was raised here, after all." He winked at the senior in front of him. The latter just stared at him dumbfounded.

Tenma smiled once more and stood up. The brunet walked over to the front, where Furukabu was. Apparently, the driver was trying in vain to get a better view of the road. Tenma sighed, "Furukabu-san."

Furukabu blinked when he heard his name and turned around. "Oh, Tenma-kun! What is it?" Tenma's eyes softened, "How about if we go to my house? We can take shelter there." The old driver smiled widely. "Really?"

"Yeah," the brunet nodded. "It's fine." Furukabu sighed in relief. He then gripped the steering wheel, "All right, then! Where's your house, Tenma-kun?" The latter chuckled at his behavior and bend forward. "OK, my house is at-"

* * *

At the back of the caravan, the team was getting excited. It was obvious that they didn't want to stay here any longer. No, they weren't talking about Okinawa. That was actually fine. It was also a lot of fun. They just didn't enjoy the rain. Not to mention, the fog and cold air with it. Right now, everyone just wanted to go somewhere that has none of those things.

"I wonder what Tenma's house looks like." Hikaru said. He turned to the small defender beside him, "Shinsuke, have you been there before?"

Shinsuke shook his head. "No, I haven't," he turned around to ask a certain manager. "How about you, Aoi?" The blue-haired manager frowned, shaking her head gently. "Me neither."

Shinsuke was shocked to hear that, "EH?! But, you and Tenma are childhood friends, right?" A small smile slowly formed on Aoi's lips and she chuckled.

"We are, but I met him at Inazuma Town," she turned to the window. The manager had a far-away look on her face, "Tenma did tell me that he was from Okinawa, though."

Shinsuke and Hikaru looked at each other and shrugged. "So, it'll be the first time for all of us then."

Not far away, Tsurugi and Shindou were busy observing Tenma. After seeing his reaction to their questions, it was a pretty understandable thing to do. "But, why?" Shindou whispered. "I've never seen him like that before." Tsurugi narrowed his eyes. It was a surprise for both of them. They didn't expect him to react that way, not at all.

Tenma was the happy-go-lucky type of person. He would always cheer everyone up and he would always motivate the team. And, he would always smile and laugh. He would always listen to his friends. That's who Tenma really was, or so they thought.

"Maybe he's always like that." The navy-haired forward said. Shindou blinked at his statement, "What do you mean?"

"Maybe he's been like that all the time," Tsurugi closed his eyes. "…But he never did it in front of us," There was a hint of sadness, regret and guilt in the forward's tone. Shindou's eyes widened. "Now that you think of it…"

CLAP!

Suddenly, there was a 'clap' sound. Everyone's heads turned around to the front, where the sound came from which is Endou.

"All right, guys! Go back to your seats, we're getting out of here!" That lifted everyone's spirits. They were finally getting out of this weather! Everyone quickly went back to their seats and fastened their seatbelts.

Tenma also went to his seat after telling Furukabu his home's locations. He also told him how to get out of here fast. Furukabu was a little irritated that Tenma didn't tell this sooner, but he just shrugged. Meh, what can he do about it?

"Everyone, you already fastened your seatbelts right?" Furukabu glanced at the back. In response, Endou gave him a thumbs-up. The driver nodded and positioned the handbrake beside him into 'Release'.

"Here we go!" Furukabu pushed down the accelerator and swiftly turned the wheel to the right. As a result, the caravan also swiftly turned to the right and onto the road.

It had a bumpy touchdown with the still slippery road, but it kept driving forward. Everyone literally braced for impact and gripped their armrests tighter. The caravan was, in their opinion, at the speed of light.

"F-Fast!" Hayami managed to say. He was gripping his armrests so tight, it made his knuckles pale. "B-Be careful, Furukabu-san! The road's slippery!"

The mentioned driver turned one eye to the rearview mirror and winked at the midfielder. "It's fine, it's fine! I know the way! We'll be at Tenma-kun's house in a flash!" Hayami pouted at him, "It doesn't have to be in a flash! It can be in an hour, you know!" The red-haired boy complained.

"Hey, it's not that bad," Hamano said beside him. "Besides, if we wait an hour we'll be freezing!"

In the front, Furukabu focused on the road. His eyes went from left to right, searching for a certain road. After a minute or two, he finally saw it. There was another road in the right, meaning that this was the junction Tenma told him.

"OK! Guys, we'll be going a little faster now, get ready!" Furukabu smiled mischievously at the second road. The team gulped, bracing for the increase of speed. Tenma, however, just chuckled at him. Maybe it really was a bad thing for him to tell Furukabu that shortcut, after all.

The brunet glanced at his teammates. Most of them were wide-eyed and a little scared of what's to come. Tenma felt a little sorry for them, but he shook his head.

_"It'll be fine, I'm sure I won't regret it!"_

Furukabu turned the wheel hard to the right and pushed the accelerator even more.

**5 minutes later,**

_"Yep, I really regret it,"_

After a lot of slippery turns, the caravan finally stopped in front of a tall gate. Inside, everyone was panting hard. They looked like they just ran around the field 20 times. But no, that's not the cause.

It turned out that Furukabu drove the caravan with the speed of light. No…it was way more than that. It felt like being pulled by a rocket at top speed.

"N-Never *hah* do that again…! *hah* Never again!" Kurama said between his breaths.

Kariya nodded, "I-I agree…" Furukabu just laughed sheepishly.

"W-Where are we?" Hikaru asked.

Sangoku looked around, "Good question." All they saw was a really tall gate in front of them. There were also trees on both left and right.

Tenma mentally groaned. He told them to open the gates on time! Why aren't the gates open yet? The brunet was about to call them again when the gates suddenly opened. Everyone gasped at the sudden movement, while Tenma sighed in relief.

"OK, let's go in."


	3. Welcome

Furukabu drove the caravan forward. Gasps of awe echoed inside. Endou glanced at the back and chuckled. Everyone's jaws, excluding Tenma and Tsurugi, dropped. Tenma's house wasn't just a house; it was a huge grand mansion! It was even bigger than Shindou's, Kirino thought.

It was almost twice the size of the Raimon school building. The front garden alone was at least 2 acres. It had every single flower in it, excluding the poisonous ones of course. There was a tall fountain in front of the main entrance. It had an underground garage that can fit 20 cars. There's a guesthouse that's half the size of the main house – basically it's amazing!

"S-Sugoi, Tenma! Your house is…huge!" Shinsuke said. Tenma blinked at his friend's reaction. He didn't think it was amazing. To him, it's just an average-sized house.

Furukabu halted the caravan stopped in front of the main entrance. He pushed the button that made the door swing open. Tenma got out – to be précised, he bounced out – first and the rest of the team, including Endou and the managers followed.

"So, this is Tenma-kun's house," Kariya said, looking around the exterior. "It's not a house, it's a modern palace!" Hayami said, flabbergasted. Tenma sweat-dropped, "Um, it's just a mansion?" he said as a matter of fact.

Hikaru blinked, and turned to Tenma. "Just a mansion? Tenma, this is-" Hikaru suddenly faltered, and seemed surprised. Kariya noticed, "Kageyama?" He saw that Hikaru was staring at something in concern. The team also saw this and followed his line of sight.

Tenma was staring at the door. But, it wasn't normal staring. He seemed…hesitant. And, dare they say this, scared. It was like he's scared of something inside. This of course worried the team. The last time they saw Tenma like this, it was when he doubted the revolution. But, his expression now was much worse and more concerning.

Tsurugi narrowed his eyes. "Ten-"

But before he could continue, Tenma turned around and grinned widely. "Welcome to my house!" he said, spreading his arms. The team stared at him dumbfounded. Just a moment ago, he seemed so miserable. But now? It's the total opposite. 'It's like he's putting a fake smile just for us,' Shindou thought, eyes narrowing.

Endou saw this but smiled cheerfully. "Hey, it's raining, remember? We need to get inside," The team glanced at their coach, surprised. It seemed that they were spacing out for quite a while. "Y-Yeah," Hikaru said reluctantly.

Tenma stared at them, "Guys? Are you OK?" Tsurugi stared at the brunet, 'We should ask you the same thing,' but he didn't tell him. He, along with everyone else, just nodded and smiled. "Yeah, we're just admiring your house," Shindou lied. Tenma tilted his head. "Admiring? There's nothing to admire for," Everyone fell anime-style.

"N-Nothing to admire, he said," Kariya stood up, clutching his head.

"T-Tenma…" Aoi sweat-dropped.

"Tenma, are you really that dense?" Midori stared at the brunette. Tenma, oblivious to what he just said, was even more confused. "Dense?"

Haruna put both of her hands in front of her chest to soothe the atmosphere. "Hey, what about we go inside? The rain's getting harder, you know," Everyone blinked, and then turned their heads towards the outside.

She was right; the rain was getting harder. It seemed that they were too focused on their conversation, that they just didn't notice it at all. "You're right, let's all go inside and take shelter!" Tenma said. The team nodded, and walked towards the door.

Tenma pushed it and it slowly opened. The light from the inside was almost blinding, they had to cover their eyes. When it was not so bright anymore, everyone scanned their surroundings. The first thing they noticed were these two curved staircases heading to the second floor. Then, a red carpet led the way to the staircase. There were 2 long hallways at both sides of the room and a chandelier hanging at the top.

"Welcome," said two voices. The team shouted from shock, and then sighed in relief when they saw 2 people standing beside them.

They seemed to be servants of the home. One was a maid; she had long brown wavy hair and big brown eyes. She also wore a beautiful maid dress. The other was a butler; he had straight black hair and grey eyes. He wore glasses and also a butler uniform.

"Welcome home, Tenma-sama. And, also his friends and coach," said the butler, slightly bowing with his right hand folded across his chest. "My name's Hitoshi Kenta, the head butler for the Matsukaze manor," Then, the maid stepped forward. "And my name is Natsuki Karin. I'm the main maid for the manor. We hope you enjoy your stay here," she said.

"I-It's our pleasure! Please take care of us! I'm Nishizono Shinsuke!" said Shinsuke bowing down as well. Tenma laughed, he expected that to happen. Karin laughed too, "I know, you're one of the defenders right?" Shinsuke blinked once, twice. "H-How did you know?"

Karin's gaze softened, "Tenma-sama told me about you," Shinsuke was confused for a second but then beamed. Karin then turned to face the team. "He told me about all of you,"

Everyone blinked. Then, Karin pointed a finger to each and every one of their guests. And not just the players, but she also knew about Endou and the managers. She told them their names, and also each player's position. She even told them the player's hissatsu techniques, down to the very last detail. Tenma blushed, not liking where this was going. "Uh, K-Karin! You can st-"

"Tenma-sama was so excited to tell me about his new friends. I never heard him that excited and happy before,"

"Karin," Now, it was Kenta's turn to try and stop her. He knew where this was going too, and he didn't like it one bit.

"I'm very grateful to all of you. You managed to distract Tenma-sama from his cut-" That's it. Tenma can't hold back any longer.

_"Karin,"_

Everyone blinked; Tenma's voice was low, dangerously low. He put a hand on her shoulder, and gripped it lightly. Karin, realizing what she just said, gasped and put both of her hands to her mouth. The team, mainly Tsurugi and Shindou, was confused.

'_You managed to distract Tenma-sama from his cut-'_

Cut? It sounded like there was more to that, Shindou thought. Cut…. Cut…. Cut…ting…. Cutting? We distracted Tenma from his cutting? What's cut-

Oh.

Before anyone could say anything though, Tenma cut them all off. "Sorry, guys. Karin sometimes gets a little too excited. Right, Karin?" He looked over to her, who nodded in response.

"Yes, I'm so sorry," Tenma put his hand off her shoulder and cheered her up. "Hey, it's okay. No harm done," Karin smiled in relief. Tenma smiled back, but his smile suddenly faltered.

'_Not yet anyway_'

The team, on the other hand, was staring at them in concern. They silently vowed to talk with either one of them later. Karin gazed the team, and smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you all in person," Endou laughed cheerfully like usual,

"No, the pleasure is ours! Thanks for letting us stay," Tenma then remembered the reason they're here, and walked towards Kenta. "We're going to be here until the rain stops. How long will it take?" he said. Kenta made a thinking pose, and frowned.

"The rain's not going to stop until tomorrow. You all have to stay here for the night," explained Kenta to the team. To Tenma, Kenta and Karin's surprise, everyone actually looked pretty happy, especially the first-years.

Shinsuke, Hikaru and Kariya beamed, then went to Kenta. The trio were literally 1,5 inches from his face. "Really?" they all said, smiling widely. Kenta looked shocked, who wouldn't when you suddenly have 3 people inches from your face? "Y-Yeah," he managed to say. A second later, the trio jumped in the air, cheering the whole time.

The seniors from the team sweat-dropped. Their juniors, excluding Tsurugi, were so childish sometimes. The girls were having a hard time to contain their laughter and Endou looked just like the time he ate Natsumi's food. 'Bear with it, it'll work out somehow," he said that over and over in his mind. Tenma laughed and held his stomach; the sight of Kenta sighing in relief was very amusing.

When the commotion was over and the first-years finally calmed down, Endou cleared his throat and stepped forward, so that he could be in front of the team. "OK, everyone! We'll stay here for the night, and go home tomorrow. Is that a problem?" he said.

"No, Coach!"

Endou nodded, "Very well! Remember, behave!" Kariya smiled and closed his eyes; he then put his hands in the air mockingly. "When are we not?" Kirino and the managers sweat-dropped. 'Uh, every time?'

"Hey, Tenma! Can we have a look around later?" Shinsuke said to the brunet. Nishiki heard, and averted his gaze towards the duo. Shinsuke was staring expectantly towards Tenma.

The latter blinked, "Huh? S-Sure," Shinsuke smiled and hugged him, "Yay, thanks Tenma!" Tenma was still surprised, but he smiled.

Nishiki grinned, then something clicked in his head that made him frown. "No offense, but I think it'll take forever to look around this house," he said, looking around. Tenma heard it, and looked at his senior.

Nishiki looked disappointed. Tenma felt sorry for him and shook his head, "Actually, no. It'll only take an hour at most, Nishiki-senpai,"

Said guy blinked, and smiled widely. "Really? Then, let's go now!" he said, running towards one of the hallways. But, something tugged his shirt and pulled him back. The midfielder was surprised; it made him land on his butt. "O-Ouch,"

He then looked behind him to see who done that, and saw Midori glaring at him. "Hey, Midori! What was that for!?" he shouted to the redhead. Midori crossed her arms; she was obviously annoyed at him. "This is not your house, you idiot! Ask Tenma first!"

Karin smiled at the duo. 'They really do want to look around, do they?'


	4. Our Rooms

**A/N: Well, next chapter! Thank you for all of your advices, guys! I mean it! Every single review that you sent me were all very helpful, so I thank you!**

**Disclaimer: I, Lyra M. R, hereby disclaim Inazuma Eleven. Except my OCs!**

* * *

Kenta turned to Karin. They stared at each other and nodded. "Now, we will show you to your rooms. Karin will show the girl's room, while I will show you your room." Kenta said, walking towards the boys while Karin walked towards the girls. Everyone nodded and went their separate ways.

"I'll be showing you the way to your room. Would you like me to carry your bags for you?" Karin clapped her hands together. The girls blinked, and shook their heads.

"No, we're fine. Thank you though," said Haruna, smiling sheepishly. Karin chuckled, and turned to one of the hallways. She gestured the girls to follow, so they did. They were halfway there when the girls started looking around, admiring every single thing.

"_Sugoi ne_, I never knew Tenma lived here." Aoi was gaping; this house was like a modern palace. Sure Tenma's her childhood friend and all, but he never really talked about his past. And every time Aoi asked him, he just changed the subject. Aoi also happened to notice that Tenma winced every time she brought the topic up. He always smiled like nothing happened after that, but she knew there was something. The question is, what?

Akane, as usual, started taking pictures of everything with her camera. "If you don't mind, can I take pictures? I can't hold back." she said to Karin. Midori sweat-dropped at her. "You know, I'm starting to wonder just how much space you have in that camera." she sighed. Akane didn't bother to look at Midori, but she answered anyway. "Unlimited, so I can take as many pictures as I want." Midori's eyes widened, "You have THAT much!?" Karin giggled.

"So, how long have you known Tenma-sama?"

Midori decided to ignore Akane's answer – because it's impossible – and glanced at Karin. She put her hand on her head, scratching it slightly. "Um, I've known him since middle school, so not that long." Midori thought out loud, putting her hands behind her head. She looked towards Akane, still taking pictures. To her own surprise, Midori was starting to believe Akane's answer. She didn't recall seeing Akane change or replace her camera's memory.

As if she heard Midori's thoughts, Akane paused and smiled at her. Then, she turned to Karin. "Me too, we met him when we all joined the soccer club." Karin smiled, and then turned to Haruna. It seemed like she didn't hear Karin's question, as she was dazed looking through the window. Even though it's raining, it just seemed so…peaceful.

Karin giggled, looking at the older girl's expression. "Haruna-san." It seemed like she heard her; because Haruna turned around so fast she could've snapped her neck. "Y-YES?" Haruna was tensed, acting like when she was in middle school.

"I said, how long have you known Tenma-sama?" Haruna's face slowly softened, sighing in relief. She grinned sheepishly, "I was the first person he met at middle school. He was looking for the soccer club, so I showed him the way," Karin laughed. '_Of course searching for the soccer club will be the first thing Tenma-sama would've done'._

Finally, Karin turned to Aoi. The blue-haired girl smiled and looked to the ceilings, lost in thought. "I've known him since he moved to Raimon. We're childhood friends." Aoi said, winking while putting her hands behind her back. Karin's smile faltered, and her eyes widened. Memories of the past came rushing into her mind.

_"Get out of my sight, you worthless scum!"_

_"You don't have to do this, Tenma-sama!"_

_"I'll be fine, I'll just go to Raimon! I'll get over it,"_

"Karin-san? Are you okay?" Aoi said, slightly worried. Karin didn't respond so it made Aoi even more worried. She put her hand on Karin's shoulder, "Karin-san?" Aoi said one more time. Karin went back to reality, and looked to Aoi's concerned face.

Karin smiled, "Fine, why do you ask?" she said, although she already knew the answer. "You were spacing out for a while there," Midori said, her hand on her hip.

Karin laughed nervously, scratching her cheek. She didn't want to remember the reason why Tenma moved. It was a really horrible memory. "O-Oh, I see. Sorry."

Akane smiled brightly, "It's fine! Don't worry," The second she said that, she went back to taking pictures. This time though, she was taking a picture with the speed of light. "A-Akane…" Midori said, sweat-dropping at her. Everyone laughed, while Karin just blinked and laughed as well.

"We're almost there." Karin said. That was enough to get everyone's attention. They continued straight ahead along the hallway. Nothing much happened after that. Well if you define 'Nothing much' by everyone, minus Karin running around like kids in the candy store, then yes. Nothing much happened.

It wasn't long until they are in front of a tall door. It was as tall as the wall. "You four will be staying here for tonight," Karin said. "Tenma-sama told me to make your room simple and comfortable. I hope you'll like it," She then opened the door. The girls stared at the room for a second, then their eyes sparkled. "W-WOW!"

The room had 4 large queen-size canopy beds, a huge bathroom and a spacious walk-in closet. There were 2 bed stands beside every bed, each with a medium-sized lamp. There was also a very large window that took up an entire wall. The remote-controlled curtains revealed a stunning view of the front garden. The lights were beautiful LED lights, changing its color every 2 minutes. Beside the window, there was a large TV. In front of it, there were 5 beanbags and a small cute table.

Midori immediately jumped into one of the beds, slumping into the comfort of the soft pillows. "Ahh, I can definitely live with this." Akane started taking pictures of every nook and cranny, not missing a single thing. Aoi stared inside the walk-in closet in awe, she couldn't believe how much space it contained! '_This can have all of Raimon students' clothes and still have space for more!_' she thought. And Haruna ran around the bathroom, scanning the bathtub and Jacuzzi. That's right, a Jacuzzi.

Karin laughed at the hectic scene. "Is it suitable? Or do we need to make a few more adjustments?" Midori's eyes were wide, and then she sat up and waved her hands.

"N-No! This is more than enough! " She said, frantically. Karin sighed in relief, "What do you think, Midori-san?" The latter didn't expect that. She glanced around the room, searching for an answer. "It's beautiful," Midori smiled widely. _'If Nishiki was here he would've teased me for sure,'_ she thought. _'But right now, I don't care.'_

"Really? I'm glad!" Karin smiled, "Well, I'll leave you four alone for now. If you need me, there's a button right there. So, all you need to do is press that button and I'll be here." She pointed to a white button right next to each of their beds, then went to the door.

"Thank you, Karin-san!" said a voice. Karin was shocked, and then turned around. It was Aoi who thanked her; she was obviously beaming with joy. Karin smiled "It's my pleasure," Then, she exited the room and closed the door. On the other side, Karin stood lost in thought. Her bangs covered her eyes and she frowned.

_'You left me no choice, Tenma. I'll just have to punish you'_

Karin sighed deeply and shook her head. "Hopefully Master comes home late tonight." she muttered. Then, she walked down the opposite way from the main entrance, unconsciously balling her fists.

* * *

Meanwhile, the boys were walking down a different hallway. Most of the first years, like the girls, were admiring every single thing. Some of the seniors were looking around too, just not as fast as their juniors.

While the others were admiring the hallway, Tsurugi and Shindou were focused on Tenma. Ever since they saw his behavior when they arrived and after hearing Karin's words, both of them started to watch the brunet from a distance. They can't see his face though; Tenma was walking in front of them. Tsurugi narrowed his eyes while Shindou just sighed.

Endou noticed the duo's worried stares at Tenma and smiled slightly. '_They really do remind me of Kidou and Gouenji,_'

"Tenma, you never told us that you live in a mansion!" Endou averted his gaze towards the one who said that. It turned out to be Hikaru, who was beaming at Tenma. The latter wasn't expecting that question, but he quickly gained his composure. "Y-You never asked."

"…."

"…."

"O-Oh, yeah."

The team fell anime-style, while Hikaru just laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. Kenta glanced at the back and smiled at the scene, "So, Tenma-sama. How are you? It's been a while since the last time you called."

"Yeah, I was wrapped up with a few things. So, I didn't really have the time to call you." Tenma answered, smiling sadly. Everyone frowned, looking away with guilt.

The brunet saw this and tried to lighten the mood. "But, it was worth it!" He grinned, hoping it will make them feel better. It seemed to work, as the others slowly smiled back. Kenta chuckled. "Hmm, I see," He then realized that they were near their destination. "Everyone, we're almost there." Kenta told the team.

After about 2 minutes, they stopped in front of a tall door. "This is where you will be staying. I sincerely hope it's suitable." Kenta said, placing his right hand on his chest. Kariya sweat-dropped at the butler, "You don't need to be so formal, you know." he said. His answer was Kenta glaring at him with cold eyes; it was enough to make the teal-haired defender shivering with fear.

"J-Just kidding! Don't you know a sense of humor?" The first years sweat-dropped at him. Kenta ignored him, and opened the door. Just like the girls, the team was speechless. Well, until Hikaru and Shinsuke started beaming, "_S-SUGOI_!"

The room was similar to the girl's room, but this one had 16 beds.. There were 2 bathrooms, each with 5 showers and 1 Jacuzzi. There was also a large TV, with 10 colorful beanbags. There was a large walk-in closet too. But this one was a little bigger than the girl's closet. The lights were LED lights, changing to blue, green, yellow or white every 2 minutes. And, finally there's a large window at the back. It was thrice the size of the girl's room.

Just like the girls, everyone started to look at everything. The first years, excluding Tsurugi, jumped to the beds. The second years stared at the bathrooms, while the third years were just speechless. And Endou was scanning the walk-in closet.

"I-I will respect Tenma a lot more after this." Kurumada said, with his mouth agape.

"Me too." Amagi joined. Tenma heard this and was shocked. "Y-you don't need to do that, Senpai!"

Ignoring their conversation, Tsurugi scanned the room. He counted the beds and realized something. "Wait." he said. It seemed he got Shindou's attention as well. "What's wrong, Tsurugi?" The navy-haired forward turned to Shindou and frowned.

"There are 16 beds, but there's 17 of us. We need one more bed." Shindou blinked, he then started to count the beds himself. "You're right, we need another bed," he nodded. "Nope, 16 beds are enough," Tenma said out of nowhere, surprising the duo.

"W-When did you-"

"I pay attention, you know."

"I thought you were talking to Kurumada-san and Amagi-san."

"They started to look around after that."

"You have sharp hearing, Tenma."

"You just knew?"

Both of them sweat-dropped at the brunet. Tsurugi coughed, getting their attention. "Tenma. There are 17 of us, including Coach Endou. It's not enough." Tenma tilted his head, "Really?" The brunet counted all of his teammates and his coach.

"14, 15, 16…Mou, Tsurugi! It's enough!" Tenma pouted at his friend. Tsurugi shook his head, "You didn't count yourself." Shindou nodded, supporting Tsurugi's statement. The midfielder stared at them for a second, and then he put his right fist onto his palm. "Oh yeah, I forgot." Both of them fell anime-style.

"H-How did you forget yourself?" Shindou asked, getting up from the floor. Tenma scratched the back of his head nervously, "Hehe, that's cause I'm not going to sleep here."

Apparently, that got everyone's attention. The team stared at their captain, who tensed under everyone's stare. Tenma then felt something tug his jersey. He turned to Shinsuke, who was tugging his shirt like a kid. "Eh~? Why, Tenma?" Shinsuke whined at his best friend. Hikaru did the same, while Kariya just stared at the two. "You guys…"

The brunet was surprised. Then, he smiled sadly. "I just miss my room, that's all." he said. "B-But still…!" Shinsuke pouted, thinking of a reason why Tenma should stay. Not far away from the two, Kenta narrowed his eyes.

_'That's obviously a lie.'_ he thought. Unknown to him, Tsurugi and Shindou also thought of the same thing. "There's another reason." Shindou whispered to Tsurugi, who nodded. "Why isn't he telling us?" he narrowed his eyes. Endou, who was watching the scene from afar, turned to the window. He noted that it was getting dark outside, which means…

CLAP!

There was a sound of hands clapping. The team turned to Endou, who did that to get everyone's attention. "It's getting late, we should change our clothes," Kenta blinked and turned to his watch. "He's right. Dinner will be held in 5 minutes, please be ready by then." he explained. The team blinked, "Dinner?"

"Yep! When you've changed your clothes, just go to the dining hall." Tenma put Shinsuke's hands of his jersey. The small defender pouted, "But, I still think Tenma should stay here," Tenma smiled sadly at him then he patted his friend's head. "I'll see you at dinner, OK?" Shinsuke hesitantly nodded. Tenma looked satisfied and walked to the door. "See you there!" he said to his team before finally exiting the room.

Everyone was still staring at the door sadly, before Kenta coughed. "Next time, please don't ask Tenma-sama that question." he coldly said. Endou narrowed his eyes, "But why didn't Tenma just stay here? Is it a family rule or something?" the brunet asked. Kenta didn't answer the coach; he just glared at him angrily.

The team sweat-dropped at the adult's stare-off. Endou was daring Kenta to answer while Kenta was mentally telling Endou to back off. Neither was giving up. The stare-off lasted for 5 more minutes, until Kenta closed his eyes and sighed.

"That's none of your business," he then turned to the team, "When you're done changing, just press that button near your beds. I'll come back and lead you to the dining hall." After he said that Kenta exited the room, leaving a confused team with their suspicious coach alone.

"…"

"U-Um, should we change our clothes?"

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading 'till the very end. You can review or PM me for suggestions, advice, ideas, etc. I'll have the next chapter published next week. Until then, see you!:3**


	5. Dinner's Ready

**Sorry for the wait, I was on vacation :3**

**Disclaimer : I disclaim! **

* * *

Tenma walked along the hallway. His steps were slow. The brunet's expression was plain. His blue eyes were focused on the front, but sometimes they would switch to the side.

"It's been a while since I've come here." the brunet said. A small smile formed on his face. He kept walking slowly, when suddenly he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to the right and Tenma's eyes widened.

It was a large family portrait. There were three people standing in front of a mansion. On the left side, a man was standing proudly. He had straight brown hair, with dark blue eyes. He seemed to be around 20 years old. The man wore a dark brown tuxedo, with a red tie. He also wore black shoes. It was the classic formal attire.

On the right side, there was a woman. She had light brown hair, with light blue eyes. Her hair was slightly swirly like the wind. She wore a light green gown with long sleeves. She didn't wear many accessories, just a plain pearl necklace and earrings. She seemed to be around 20 too, although she looked slightly younger than the man beside her.

Both of them were gripping the back of a big golden chair. There was a young boy sitting on it. The boy had dark brown swirly hair, similar to the woman behind him. He also had big blue eyes. The color was a combination of dark and light blue. The child wore a yellow long-sleeve shirt. On top of it was a red T-shirt. He wore dark blue jeans on the bottom with green shoes. Compared to the adults behind him, it was a casual everyday outfit.

The three of them were smiling. They looked like a happy family.

Tenma's fists balled and he gritted his teeth. His eyes started fill with tears, but he held it in. He shook his head, remembering bits and pieces of the day the portrait was taken.

_"Hurry up, Tenma! We can't wait forever." the woman said. Hearing his name, Tenma smiled and approached the woman. "Yes, Mom!"_

_Tenma's mother smiled, she then put her hand on top of a chair next to her. "Sit here and smile, okay?" she said. Tenma's smile widened and he nodded with excitement. He put one of his legs on top of the chair, desperately trying to sit on it. But, the chair was too big for a small child like him. _

_Tenma pouted and he tried harder. But, he just can't get on top. Beside him, Tenma's mother smiled at her son's attempt. "You need some help, Tenma?" _

_The brunet shook his head, "No, I can do it myself!" Tenma's mother sighed; her son was stubborn to the core. She was about to approach him, when something caught her attention. _

_Tenma, on the other hand, was still struggling to sit on the chair. His attempts were in vain, but that didn't stop him. Suddenly, a pair of arms lifted him off the ground. Tenma gasped, and he looked behind him. The person who lifted him was none other than his father. _

_"Tenma, everyone needs help sometimes." he chuckled. Tenma pouted angrily at his father. "Mou, Dad! Next time, warn me when you're going to do that!" His father giggled and he put Tenma on top of the chair. _

_"There, now we can take a picture!" he said, while petting his son's hair. Tenma grinned, glad that he was finally able to sit on the chair. His father grinned as well. A few feet away from them, Tenma's mother smiled softly at her boys. _

"But that was a long time ago." Tenma said. He stood in front of the portrait, with his bangs covering his teary blue eyes. The brunet turned towards the woman in the portrait. His eyes softened, "Everything's changed since you left, Mom." Tenma stood there for a few more minutes, then he continued walking back to his room.

* * *

*KNOCK*

*KNOCK*

Karin knocked on the girl's door. She forgot to inform them that dinner's ready. In fact, she didn't tell them that there was dinner at all. Karin sighed at her own clumsiness, when Haruna opened the door slightly. "Yes?"

"Ah, Haruna-san. I'm so sorry for bothering you," Karin said politely. Haruna blinked, and then she fully opened the door. "Karin-san! No, it's perfectly fine! Come in." the advisor said. Karin nodded and she slowly walked inside.

Apparently, all of the girls already changed into their casual outfits. Aoi, who was folding her clothes, wore a cream short-sleeved shirt with sky-blue jean shorts. She also wore a blue flower necklace. Midori, who was busy watching the TV, wore a blue shirt with a white jacket. She also wore dark blue jeans. Akane, who was still taking pictures, wore a knee-length light pink dress. She also wore a pair of purple panty-house; similar to the one she usually wears. And, Haruna wore a white shirt with a cream cardigan. She also wore a pair of black leggings.

Haruna had closed the door when Aoi noticed Karin's arrival. She quickly folded her clothes and approached her. "Karin-san! What brings you here?" the manager asked.

Karin smiled nervously, "I'm sorry, girls. But, I forgot to tell you something." Midori blinked, she paused the TV and turned to Karin. "Tell us what?" she said from her beanbag chair.

"Dinner's ready."

The girls blinked, "Dinner?"

Karin nodded, "Yes, dinner. We're having them at the dining hall right now. Kenta will have the boys there too." Midori smiled widely. The red-haired girl turned off the TV and walked towards Karin.

"Thanks! I'm starving." she said while rubbing her stomach. Akane stopped taking pictures and approached Karin as well. "Me too." the chestnut-haired girl said, holding her pink camera.

Karin chuckled. Then she turned towards Aoi and Haruna, waiting for their approval. Haruna smiled and she looked at Aoi. "Shall we?" The latter nodded, agreeing with the soccer advisor.

"OK then, let's go. Please follow me." Karin turned towards the door. The girls looked at each other, nodded and followed Karin.

* * *

Meanwhile, the boys had just finished changing their clothes, all except for Endou. He insisted that he was comfortable with his current outfit. While he said that, the players were beginning to settle in the room. They put their clothes in the closet and their bags under their beds. Some of them even put their belongings on the bed stand.

"I still want Tenma to stay." Shinsuke pouted from his bed. Kariya, whose bed was beside him, heard his statement. "You already said that 6 times now, Shinsuke." The small defender turned his head lazily to Kariya.

"You counted?" The teal-haired defender shrugged. "It's hard not to," he sighed. "But, saying it over and over won't make Tenma stay." Shinsuke frowned and he lowered his head. "I know." he said with a sad tone.

Kariya stared at his friend. He felt sorry for Shinsuke, but feeling sad about it won't change a thing. Besides, it was Tenma's own decision. They just can't force him to stay. "Hey, at least we get to see him at dinner. Remember?" he reminded.

"Speaking of dinner," Endou said from afar. "Is everyone ready?" Shinsuke and Kariya blinked, they didn't expect Endou to hear their conversation. But, they nodded nonetheless. "Yes!" the other players replied. Endou nodded and went to push the button beside the bed.

*THUD*

"…"

"Huh?"

The boys were surprised. Nothing happened. No, they didn't expect Kenta to be here the second Endou pushed the button. But, the button didn't make a sound. The only thing that was heard was the sound of Endou's finger making contact with its surface.

"That's strange. Not a sound." Hikaru approached the button. He put his finger over it, but didn't push it. "Is it supposed to do that?" he turned towards the rest of the team. Everyone shrugged; they didn't know either. Shindou narrowed his eyes and inspected the button carefully. "Weird."

*KNOCK*

*KNOCK*

The second Shindou said that, there was a knock. Everyone in the room turned towards the door. "That's probably Kenta-san." Tsurugi stated calmly. Hamano blinked, "He's fast."

Since Kirino's bed was the closest to the door, he was the one who went to open it. The pink-haired defender opened the door slightly to see who knocked it. Once he saw a butler uniform from the outside, he fully opened the door. "We're ready, Kenta-san." he said.

The mentioned butler looked behind Kirino to scan the room. He was right, everyone already changed. Well, except for the coach at least. Kenta pushed his glasses up, "Endou-san, why didn't you change your clothes?" he asked sternly. Endou narrowed his eyes, "I'm comfortable with my current outfit." the brunet replied with his hands on his hips.

Kenta went silent and closed his eyes, "Very well," he turned to his right, "Everyone, please follow me." After that, he walked away from everyone's sight. Kariya gritted his teeth, "Tch, weird guy." He then, along with the others, went out of the room and followed Kenta.

* * *

"What are we having for dinner, Karin-san?" Aoi asked the maid. Karin smiled at her, "You'll know when we get there." Aoi pouted from her answer. "Eh~? Tell us now!" The maid giggled from the manager's childish reaction.

"To be honest, I don't know it myself." That surprised the girls, apparently. "Why not?" Akane said from behind her. Karin turned around to see the chestnut-haired girl. "There's no permanent menu here, Akane-san. Our chef makes it a surprise for us all the time. It makes dinner more fun, I guess." the maid grinned.

Midori looked impressed, "Really? Well, that does sound more fun." Akane turned towards her, "It really does, Midori-chan!" Haruna nodded beside her, "Yeah, I agree! Let's do that with the soccer club too, shall we?" Aoi smiled with excitement, "That's a great idea, Otonashi-san!" Karin chuckled; these girls were so energetic.

Karin turned to the front and realized something. She turned to her guests behind her, "Girls, we're here!"

* * *

On the other hand, the team was not as energetic. The air was so tense; it can be cut with a knife. Sure it's just for dinner but the adults were making the atmosphere uncomfortable.

Tsurugi glanced behind him. Endou was eyeing Kenta suspiciously. He then averted his glance to Kenta, whose expression was unreadable. But the navy-haired forward can tell that he was trying to ignore Endou.

Can't take this atmosphere any longer, Shindou walked a little faster to catch up with the butler. "How much longer, Kenta-san?" he asked beside him. Kenta offered Shindou smile, "We're almost there, Shindou-san," he pointed a finger to the front, "You can almost see it from here."

Shindou followed Kenta's line of sight. He narrowed his eyes to see the dining hall. The midfielder blinked when he saw a glimpse of the room. "You're right." Kenta's eyes softened and he turned around to the team behind him. "Everyone, we're almost there!"

Nishiki smiled widely, "Really? Great, I'm starving!" he said while rubbing his stomach. The seniors sweat-dropped at him. At the front, Hikaru then blinked. "Oh yeah!"

It seemed like he remembered something so he went to approach Kenta, "What's for dinner tonight, Kenta-san?" The butler didn't expect that question so he stared at him for a while. But he recovered quickly and then winked at the forward.

"You'll know it when you see it."

* * *

**Thanks for reading 'till the very end! You can review if you want to, or send suggestions! See you next week! ^^**


	6. The Dining Hall

**A/N: Here's the chapter guys! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. It was a week or two since the last chapter, huh? I'm SO SORRY! I was extremely busy with many things, I didn't have the time. I was planning to publish yesterday, but the site was too stubborn! Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I, Lyra M. Rose, disclaim!**

* * *

Everyone walked forward to the end of the hallway. A bright white light greeted them when they got there.

When their eyes finally adjusted to the brightness, everyone slowly opened their eyes. What they saw made them all speechless. They weren't in the hallway anymore; they're now inside a big room the looks of the furniture, this was the dining hall.

"W-Wow…"

The first thing everyone saw was the long table in the center of the room. 22 golden cream seats were placed around it -10 seats on the sides and 2 seats at the ends. A large white tablecloth covered the entire topside of the table. The tableware was set elegantly. There was a plate and a bowl; the bowl was placed on top of the plate along with a cream-colored napkin. On both sides of the plate, there were forks, knives and spoons. The knives and spoons were placed on the right while the forks were on the left.

Aoi smiled widely, "So beautiful!" Akane joined her, imaginary flowers blooming around her. "It's like we're inside a castle!"

Shinsuke heard the two managers. He stopped gazing at the table and turned to their direction. The small defender waved his hand at them, "Aoi-chan!"

The manager heard him and waved back. "Shinsuke!" The team heard them and turned towards the girls. The girls also heard them and turned to the boys. This was the first time they saw each other after they separated to their rooms. Apparently, they were too busy admiring the room that they forgot to pay attention to the people around them.

"Midori, you're not wearing a dress? How shameful for a girl!"

"H-Hey! I can dress however I want! At least I don't look like you, Nishiki!"

"Shin-sama, you're so handsome!"

"T-Thank you, Akane-san. You look nice, too."

"Eh? Coach Endou, you didn't change your clothes?"

"I'm comfortable with this."

Aoi eyed the team. Everyone was present, except for one. The manager blinked. She thought that he was supposed to be with them. "Shinsuke, where's Tenma?"

Shinsuke's shoulders slumped slightly and he frowned. "He said he's going to sleep in his own room."

Aoi tilted her head. "Really?" she asked. The defender nodded. "Even though this is his house, he should sleep with us," Shinsuke sighed. "We are friends, after all."

Aoi felt sorry for Shinsuke he looked so sad. "But, he's still having dinner with us, right?"

Kariya heard them and walked over. "Yep," he said. "But, he's not here yet." Hikaru also joins in the conversation. "He should be here soon."

That caught Tsurugi and Shindou's attention. Even though they were a few feet away, they heard what Hikaru said perfectly. The duo quickly scanned the room, searching for the brunet. But, he was nowhere to be found.

Tsurugi and Shindou looked at each other and nodded. Then they approached Kenta, who stayed behind the group. "Kenta-san." Tsurugi said. Kenta turned to him, "What?"

Shindou stepped forward. "Where's Tenma? He should be here now." Kenta sighed. "The distance between Tenma-sama's room and this dining hall is pretty far," The butler pushed his glasses up. "It'll take him a while to get here."

Tsurugi and Shindou frowned. "I see." Kenta looked at them with pity. "But please don't worry!" he said. "Tenma-sama will be here soon. He never misses din-"

"Guys!" Everyone halted when they heard that voice. That voice could only belong to one person. With that in mind, everyone turned around. They saw that person, Tenma, standing in front of the same hallway the boys took. Kenta chuckled."See?"

Tenma was wearing his casual clothes, which was a green shirt with a white jacket. He also wore dark blue jeans. Shinsuke beamed brightly and ran to the brunet, "Tenma! You're here!"

Tenma laughed. "Sorry I'm late. My room's a little far from here." Kenta approached the brunet. "No, Tenma-sama. You're just in time," He turned to everyone in the room. "Everyone, please take a seat! Dinner will be served shortly."

Both Kenta and Karin left for the kitchen after that. They exited the room and went into the hallway the girls took. When they left, everyone was about to pick a seat.

Tenma decided to sit on the first seat at the left side. Shinsuke, naturally, sat beside him, along with Kariya and Hikaru. The managers sat alongside them as well. Kurama, Hamano and Hayami occupied the rest of the seats.

On the right side, Tsurugi sat across Tenma while Shindou sat across Shinsuke. Of course, Kirino sat next to his best friend. Sangoku, Amagi and Kurumada settled down next to them. Nishiki, Ichino and Aoyama took the remaining seats. Endou decided to sit on the edge, while Haruna sat beside Aoyama. Every seat was full, except for one.

"Tenma, shouldn't you sit there?" Shinsuke pointed at the empty seat at the edge. Tenma looked at him, "What? Why should I?" The small defender just shrugged. "Well, this is your house. I thought it was appropriate." Tenma smiled at his answer, "I see." Then, he averted his gaze to the seat. The brunet stared at it sadly. That worried Shinsuke. "Tenma?"

The mentioned midfielder shook his head, "Nah, Shinsuke. I'd rather sit here," Tenma turned away from the chair and smiled at his best friend. "Besides, that's my father's seat." He added. A few chairs away, Hikaru heard what Tenma said. "Oh yeah, Tenma." He moved forward slightly so that he could see the brunet.

Tenma tilted his head. "What is it, Hikaru?"

"Where's your father, anyway? Is he here?"

That caught the brunet off guard. He didn't answer right away. The mere mention of 'father' managed to bring back horrible past memories to the brunet.

'_Don't you dare call me that!'_

'_You're the one who should've died, not her!'_

'_It was your fault…__**IT WAS YOUR FAULT!**__'_

'_Get out of my sight, you useless scum!'_

'_**GO!'**_

"Tenma?" Tenma blinked. He saw that everyone was looking at him, clearly worried. "Guys, what's wrong?"

"You looked really scared just now." Shindou replied. "Are you okay?"

Tenma's eyes widened slightly. He frowned and mentally cursed himself.

_Damn it! _

At that moment, everyone could see the fear on his blue eyes. The fear Tenma never showed. The fear he always hid from them. No one had ever seen that much fear on Tenma's eyes. But right now, they could see it crystal clear.

But that fear disappeared as soon as it came. Tenma quickly regained his composure and put on a smile. "Pfft, scared?" he chuckled. "You probably saw it wrong."

No one responded; Tenma's fearful eyes were still in their minds. Shinsuke shook his head. "But it's true!" Tenma answered by petting the small defender's head.

"Are you sure? It wasn't your imagination?" he asked calmly. Shinsuke pouted and desperately tried to stop him. "No! I'm sure!"

Shindou narrowed his eyes. _'He's good at dealing the situation.'_ He midfielder stared sadly at Tenma, _'He must have practiced that a lot.'_

"Stop fooling around, Tenma." Tsurugi scolded. Shindou tilted his head to the forward. Tenma stopped petting Shinsuke's hair and focused his attention to him. "I'm not."

Tsurugi didn't look impressed. "We all saw you. You were scared."

Tenma raised an eyebrow at him. "Really?" he crossed his arms, "What proof do you have?"

Tsurugi narrowed his eyes. That was…actually something even he can't answer. He silently gritted his teeth. The forward had to admit it; Tenma's pretty smart. He knew they didn't have proof. Of course they didn't, who would record or take a picture of someone who seemed so scared?

Tsurugi was about to say something back when Kenta and Karin suddenly walked in. Maids and butlers appeared behind them, pushing carts filled with delicious meals.

"Everyone, dinner's ready!"

Tsurugi silently glared daggers at them both. But, the butler and maid were oblivious of his annoyed glare. Either that, or they just ignored him and the imaginary daggers.

Tsurugi closed his eyes and sighed. He opened them after several seconds. The forward narrowed his eyes at the person in front of him. He was currently busy talking to Kenta.

But eventually that person, Tenma, noticed his stare. He tilted his head, slightly confused at why he was staring at him like that.

"What is it, Tsurugi?" he whispered.

Now, Tsurugi practically glared at him. "This conversation's not over, got it?" he whispered back. At first, Tenma was quiet. Confusion was clearly visible on his face. But then, he smiled sheepishly at him.

_No._

_I don't want to talk about it. _

_Not anymore._

_Please._

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry it's shorter than the previous chapter. If you want to give me suggestions or critics or opinions, just click the 'Review' button below. OR you can PM (Private Messaging) me. To do that, just click my username and you'll know from there. The reason I'm telling you all this is because when I started out, I had no idea what's a 'PM' and how to do it. I hope this is helpful in a way! **


	7. A New Face

**A/N: I'm back! And, I'm SOOOO sorry I haven't updated! I've been very, very busy. Had a tight schedule as well. I think I'll update once every two weeks from now on. I'm not that sure, but maybe it'll work for me. And, also I'm gonna give you guys a heads-up. I won't be available for another week or two later. I'm gonna be away from my laptop, and I will not bring any writing equipment. So, I'm not gonna update (again). SORRY!**

**Disclaimer: I disclaim. Period. No comas or anything else. That's it. I admitted. I don't own any of these, except for my OCs.**

* * *

"All right, everyone. We will serve the appetizer first, and then we'll continue with the main dish and lastly, the dessert. We hope you like it." Kenta explained with a slight bow. Then, he clapped his hands. The second he did that, every maid and butler proceeded to serve the first course.

The maids went to each seat, carrying soup bowls. In precise synch, they laid down the soup bowls in front of each guest. Two of the maids behind them followed, laying out four baskets of bread. The butlers then approached the table, both carrying a small pot of soup that rested on plate on one hand while holding a ladle in the other. They approached table, leaning in before serving the still piping soup.

"This is homemade corn cream soup. Please, enjoy it with some bread if you'd like." Kenta said. The other servants bowed to them in respect before leaving the room. Most of the team was speechless by the teamwork the servants showed. "T-Thanks, I guess…" Kirino said, dumbfounded like the others. Even Tsurugi was blinking from what just happened. The only ones who weren't affected were Tenma and Shindou. Tenma, again, was used to it, as was Shindou.

"This looks great! Thanks!" Tenma said, reaching for a loaf of bread. His reaction was a straight contrast to the elegant performance just earlier and it was refreshing. "Could you pass me the bread?" Shinsuke asked first. Tenma took the basket in one hand before handing it over to his friend. "Here." Shinsuke took the basket and smiled. "Thanks!" Shindou observed the two with a smile. He looked over to Tsurugi, who was eating in silence. Shindou narrowed his eyes, '_He's quieter than usual.'_

"Well, what about you Amagi?" Sangoku asked his friend. The said defender grinned, looking excited and hungry. "Yeah, I'll have some. Pass it here!" He turned to the purple-haired first-year across the table. "Kageyama! Let's have some!" Hikaru sweat-dropped at his senior, "Y-Yes, Amagi-senpai."

Soon, the silence was gone. The children talked as they laughed, some of the girls felt like chiding at the boys for being so vulgar at such a formal occasion, but then again, as nice it all was, this was just a simple dinner at a friend's and the mood in the air was so much better. Haruna and Coach Endou finally managed to relax, more than glad to see everyone settle down for the first time since they had arrived.

Karin and Kenta smiled. "We'll be leaving then. If you need anything," Kenta approached Tenma and gave him a small white button. "Just press that button, and we'll be here. We sincerely hope you enjoy your meal." Kenta and Karin bowed in respect. Endou smiled, "Don't worry, I'm sure we will!"

The butler stared at the coach, before having a small smile appear on his face. He nodded, and started to walk towards the door with Karin by his side. "Thanks, you two!" Karin looked back to see Tenma grinning at them. She smiled in relief, finally able to see him being happy again. It's been a long time since she saw that smile. And, she was grateful that she could see it again. With that in mind, Karin sent Tenma a soft smile back. Then, she and Kenta exited the room. When the duo was out, everyone cupped their hands and said "_Itadakimasu!"_ together. When that's done, they proceeded to eat their appetizer.

"This is delicious!" Shinsuke said, taking more and more spoonfuls his soup with each taste. Oddly though, he refrained from eating any of the kernels left in the bowl. Tenma sweat-dropped at his friend's behavior. "Shinsuke, slow down. And eat the kernels too."

Shinsuke halted, "Oh yeah, forgot." Then, he pouted at Tenma. "But, the soup's more delicious than the corn!" he said in a matter-of-factly tone. A few seats away from them, Midori shook her head at Shinsuke's statement. "But, Shinsuke…" the manager leaned forward to see the defender more clearly. "The soup tastes like that _because_ of the corn."

"Can't blame him, though." Kariya shrugged. "The soup is pretty tasty." Midori's eye twitched and she glared at the teal-haired boy.

"I told you, that's because of the corn!"

"All right, all right! Don't be so angry!" Kariya said, defending himself. The rest of the group laughed at the duo's bickering.

* * *

Kenta and Karin walked down the hallway. It was silent, the only noise that could be heard was their footsteps. Until they heard something not far away. It was the sound of running footsteps, coming towards them Kenta and Karin looked back in curiosity, searching for the source of the sound. After much closer inspection, the duo saw a butler running from a distance. "Kenta-san!"

Both of them fully turned around, the butler coming to a halt before them. "What is it?" Kenta asked. The butler stepped forward and whispered something to Kenta's ear. He frowned, turning the other man away.

"Karin, go on without me." Said maid blinked. She was about to ask why, but Kenta had already sprinted to the lobby. Confused, she turned to the butler beside her. "What did you say?"

The butler looked down to the floor, "Master's back."

* * *

Outside the mansion, a black car pulled over the driveway, with the chauffeur exiting from the driver's side. He quickly went to the left side of the car and opened the passenger door. This time, a sturdy man, aged somewhere in his late thirties came out. He wore a dark brown suit, and was carrying a black suitcase with his left arm.

The man was about to approach the house, when he spotted something not far away. He looked to his right and saw a blue and white caravan. The driver and passengers were nowhere to be found, but one thing stood out.

In front of the caravan was a small yellow thunder logo. There was also the sign "Inazuma11GO" on the side. The man narrowed his eyes; he had seen that thunder before.

'_Daddy! Daddy! I want to go here when I grow up!'_

'_Here? Why?'_

'_Because, it has the same logo as my soccer ball!'_

'_Oh really? What's its name?'_

The man's eyes widened. That's right. He had seen that before. It's the logo of a particularly famous school. The man gritted his teeth in anger, "Raimon Junior High."

"Welcome home, Atsushi-sama."

The man turned to the butler standing in front of the lobby. "Kenta."

"Yes, sir?"

"Do we have any guests?" The butler visibly tensed. For the first few minutes, he didn't answer at all, but after much hesitation, Kenta finally replied. "Yes, sir. We do have some guests."

"Who?" Kenta bit his lip, sweating a little in his hands. He didn't want to answer, too afraid for the outcome, but, the man in front of him was not a patient man. He would always get an answer. He learned that the hard way. So to his displeasure, he had to answer.

"Tenma-sama and his friends, sir."

A ridiculous amount of rage and anger boiled inside the man. The second _his_ name was mentioned, a lot of mixed emotions came to his body all at once.

And all of those emotions were negative. Rage, anger, despise, hatred etc. The man's fists were balled up and he gritted his teeth. "_Tenma_, you say?"

"…Yes, sir."

"I thought I forbade you from letting him into the mansion, Kenta." The man said coldly. Kenta gulped, which was not normal for him.

"It was a…slight emergency, sir. Tenma-sama and his friends were searching for shelter from the rain."

"And why did he have to come here?"

"This was the nearest shelter."

"And how long are they staying?"

"Until the rain stops, sir. Then, they'll return to Inazuma Town." There was silence after that. The man glared at Kenta, not uttering a word. Kenta, on the other hand, was shaking. He was nervous and scared.

The man in front of him, Matsukaze Atsushi, was known to be a fierce and impatient man who always found a way to get what he wanted and he did not take any refusal kindly.

After a few minutes of a one-sided glaring session between master and servant, Atsushi finally closed his eyes and sighed. "I want to meet him in my office in 5 minutes." Kenta suppressed the urge to sigh in relief and bowed. "I understand, sir."

Atsushi walked past Kenta and towards the mansion. The butler could hear his master being greeted by the servants behind him. "Welcome home, Atsushi-sama." The usual greeting his master gets every time he comes back. Honestly, Kenta was getting tired of that greeting but he knew that his opinion didn't matter.

The butler balled up his fists. He closed his eyes, feeling frustrated to no end. Again, he didn't want to do what his master had ordered but he had no choice. A butler must do everything his master mandated, but to call Tenma to meet his father? An absolute 'no' from him, that was for sure. So many things could go wrong between the two of them. Between father and son.

Kenta opened his eyes slowly and frowned. With a heavy heart, Kenta went back inside the house to inform Tenma the dreadful news, something he was not looking forward to. Things were not going to end well that night.

* * *

"Tenma, this is _delicioso_!" Nishiki said to the brunet. "I'm so excited about the next meal!" Tenma laughed at his senior's Italian accent. "Thanks, Nishiki-senpai."

"Nishiki's right, Tenma. This is the best appetizer I've ever had! And this is just cream soup!" Endou stated, excitement clearly written on his face. '_And, it's not Natsumi's cooking!'_

"The cheese makes it even more tasty. The perfect bonus, I'll say." Haruna smiled, nodding her head. The nice feedback everyone was giving embarrassed the midfielder a little. "Is that so? Well, thanks."

"I still say the soup's tastier than the corn." Tenma didn't have to look to know who said that. Of course it was Kariya being himself again. As expected, Midori's voice was instantly heard a few seats away. "I told you, _it was because of the corn!"_

While everyone else was either sweat-dropping or laughing at the duo, Tenma sighed and shook his head. He really didn't know if Kariya was purposely baiting Midori to come at him, or he just forgot the outcome of that sentence. Whatever it was, he got the result.

"Tenma-sama."

Said boy blinked. He turned around to see Kenta in front of the door. Judging from the butler's tone and expression, he could tell that this was not going to be good. "What's wrong, Kenta?"

"In private please, Tenma-sama." Kenta whispered and very sadly. Tenma stopped eating, understanding the situation. He lay down his spoon on the bowl before getting up.

Though Shinsuke did not hear exactly what Kenta said to his friend, he could see the slight change in Tenma's mood. "Tenma, what's wrong?" he asked, mostly confused. The mentioned boy merely shook his head. He turned to the small defender beside him with a smile on his face.

"Nothing, Shinsuke." Tenma calmly said, worrying him further. Calm was not how Tenma usually was.

He slowly stood up from his seat and looked at his friends. "Guys, I'm going to go out for a while. Just continue eating without me, okay?" Without bothering for an answer, he hastily walked out the room with Kenta.

There was brief surprise and confusion, but most soon returned to their own conversation, any concern placed behind their minds. However, Endou crossed his arms, still troubled by what he saw. Away from him, Aoi was also worrying, wondering if everything was fine.

Across the table, Kariya lazily looked at every seat. Why? The teal-haired defender shrugged, '_Just because.'_ When he was done, Kariya concluded that only three out of those twenty-two seats were empty. The first one was empty to begin with. The second belonged to Tenma, who just left. And the third one belonged to Tsurugi.

Wait.

Kariya looked around the room. After looking at every corner and person, his search results was confirmed true. "Where's Tsurugi-kun?"

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading 'till the very end! Just so you know, this was actually half of the chapter I was gonna update. HALF! Well, not really half. Just a third of it. So, what do you think? Tell me your opinions by pressing that 'Review' button below. If you want to give me ideas and inspirations, just PM me. Go press my username above the chapter and you'll know the rest. But, I'm warning you. I won't be available for the next week or two. So don't be surprised if I don't answer. **


	8. Startling Discovery

**A/N: Hi, guys! Just got back from my trip, and I finished my touching reunion with my laptop! I missed it a lot, my phone has a small screen so it's a little hard for me to write the chapter. But, somehow I managed. And, as you can see, here it is! Chapter 8!**

**Disclaim: I, Lyra M.R, do NOT own Inazuma Eleven nor its characters. I only own my OCs, which you will see in this chapter.**

* * *

Tsurugi ran along the hallway, not making a single sound. Somehow, he managed to slip through the closing doors and followed Tenma and Kenta, but it was easier said than done. Whatever that went on between them, it was clear that Tenma didn't want anyone in the room to notice it. Considering just how much asking helped him out, following him would definitely provide more answers.

The navy-haired forward ran quietly, halting a few times to hide behind the oblivious pair, until Tenma and Kenta stopped in front of a door. Tsurugi stopped running, and went to hide behind the closest pillar to him. He leaned forward, making sure that neither of them would notice him.

For a while, Tenma and Kenta didn't do anything. They just stared at the door. That confused the forward. He looked closer to see their expressions. Kenta was, as usual, unreadable, but Tenma was plain anxious.

"Tenma-sama." Kenta laid a hand on the boy's shoulder. Tenma's eyes remained fixed to the door, but he slowly nodded, acknowledging the little comfort given to him.

He smiled down at the brunet, "Everything will work out, right?" Hearing his own catchphrase being told, Tenma couldn't help but giggle. He turned to Kenta with a small smile, feeling a little better. "Yeah. Thank you."

Kenta nodded, before he knocked on the door. "Who is it?" a muffled deep voice said from the inside. Tsurugi could barely make it out.

"Tenma-sama's here, sir." Kenta replied. The uncomfortable silence didn't last long.

"Bring him in." The voice ordered. Kenta looked at the boy beside him. Tenma gave him a reassuring smile, mentally telling the butler that it would be okay. Kenta unwillingly nodded. He finally reached for the doorknob and slowly opened the door. Tenma stared at the person inside.

Tsurugi couldn't see exactly who. Then, Tenma slowly walked inside. "You may leave, Kenta." The voice said, now a bit clearer to Tsurugi's ears.

"Yes, sir." Kenta said.

He closed the door with a 'click', and walked away. Once he was out of sight, Tsurugi slowly walked over to the door. He leaned against it, pressing his ear against the door's cold surface.

* * *

Tenma stood in the middle of the room. His hands were shaking, but he did his best to hide it. The person before him didn't do anything. He remained seated on his chair, arms placed on his desk, glaring at Tenma. The tension between them was thick. Not even the Death Sword could slice it.

"It's been a long time, boy." Atsushi finally said. "Yes…sir." Tenma said with a quiver in his voice. The man narrowed his eyes. "I thought I made myself clear last time." Tenma winced. He knew where this talk was going. Atsushi slowly stood up and made his way over to the midfielder. "Do you remember?"

Tenma bit his lip, remaining silent. Atsushi took small steps, circling the boy. "I told you that you're forbidden to come into this mansion. Remember why?" Tenma nodded. He remembered, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything. The man narrowed his eyes dangerously.

"_Because, you're not my son_."

The man scratched his head with frustration. "Geez, why did I even call you my son to begin with?" Atsushi sighed, "How embarrassing."

Tenma looked down to the floor, tears forming in his eyes. This wasn't the first time Atsushi said this to him, but, he couldn't get used to it. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't. Atsushi walked closer to the brunet, "Do I make myself clear?" he asked with venom in his voice.

"Y-Yes, sir..." Tenma faintly replied. Suddenly, he felt a painful, sharp force against his left cheek. The force made Tenma lose his balance, causing him to fall onto the floor. He touched his left cheek, and looked up to the man who did it. Somehow, this situation felt familiar.

"I didn't hear you," Atsushi said, gritting his teeth. "Do I make myself clear!?" This time, he practically shouted at the boy before him. Tenma closed his eyes, slightly trembling. "Yes!"

Atsushi narrowed his eyes, "And don't you forget it." He said with a cold voice. The man turned around, walking back to his desk. "You're dismissed. Get out and stay out."

Tenma nodded and slowly stood up, unable to stop trembling. Tears were visible in his eyes, but he held them back. He took deep breaths quickly to calm down before finally making his way towards the door.

* * *

Tsurugi slowly backed up from the door, eyes wide and mouth agape. To say he was shocked was an understatement. What he heard froze him to the core. And boy, did he heard all of it.

Then, a wave of realization washed over him. Tsurugi blinked, it all made sense now. Tenma's behavior when they first got here. It was as if he didn't want to come into his own home. Tsurugi thought that as a joke. But after hearing their conversation, he was beginning to believe it. And Tenma kept it all a secret. They were the best of friends! He should've told him at least something about-

A loud 'creak' sound broke him from his thoughts. The door before him opened, with Tenma's figure walking out of it, but his appearance surprised the navy-haired boy. Nothing about him actually changed, only now there was a light red bruise on his left cheek and his eyes were filled with tears. He looked like he was about to cry, but he held it back. Tsurugi was really taken aback by Tenma's condition. He never saw him like this before; it was total shock.

Tenma sighed sadly. That...didn't go so well. Not that he expected it to. He hadn't seen Atsushi for years, so he predicted his reunion with him wouldn't be a happy celebration. Tenma's hand went up to his red cheek. It was starting to bruise, not an easy thing to hide. He couldn't let the others see him like this; he had to go someplace where no one would bother him.

Tenma was about to walk to his room, when he noticed something from his right. He turned around to see a surprised navy-haired figure. Tenma's eyes widened.

"Tsurugi."

The said boy just stared back at him in disbelief. Panic rushed into the brunet. Why was Tsurugi here? Did he hear the whole thing? If that's the case, then he knew. He knew his secret. Busted. With that in mind, Tenma ran the other direction without looking back. He really didn't want to see or talk to anyone at this point.

Tsurugi was surprised when Tenma suddenly bolted away. "Tenma! Wait!" he shouted, chasing after him. If they were out in the city, Tsurugi would have lost him now between the sea of people and the many turns and intersections of the roads, but luckily they weren't. They were in a house where there couldn't be many places for Tenma to run off to and hide.

He was behind, but not too far from Tenma, who was beginning to slow down with the close walls and the obstructions of decorative tables, corners, and ornamental plants hindering some of his movements.

"Leave me alone, Tsurugi!" Tenma eventually shouted and then he suddenly stopped in front of a room. He pushed the door open, turning to slam it shut until the door suddenly stopped halfway. Just barely making it, Tsurugi forced the door back.

"Can you just stop for a second?" With some effort, Tsurugi finally managed to let himself in. With their only way out now closed, and Tenma gasping against the door to catch his breath, they could finally talk in some peace. "Why...won't you leave me alone…?"

He could see that Tenma was close to breaking down, leaning against the door like it was a crutch for whatever strength he had left keeping him up. It was strange being on the opposite end of the conversation this time; to be the one to try cheer the up. After a moment of thought, Tsurugi asked, "Are you okay?"

"You think!?" Tenma snapped back. Taken aback by what is his first time seeing his friend this furious, Tsurugi remained silent, even more unsure as to what he should say. It was then Tenma's expression changed. He turned away again, shaking. "I-I'm sorry...just…"

"It's okay." Tsurugi assured. Tenma wiped any tear that he could, more ashamed than embarrassed for his behaviour. "Can we not talk about this?" Tenma said, almost pleading in his voice.

"You don't have to, don't worry. I understand." he replied, genuinely understanding what Tenma was at least feeling. A small chuckle escaped Tenma's breath.

"Come to think of it...I'm really a jerk. I forced you to tell me about your problems and now…" Tenma stopped, taking a moment to regain some composure. "I'm really sorry you had to hear that."

Tsurugi couldn't care less. "You don't need to be sorry. You shouldn't even have to take that kind of abuse."

Tenma stayed eerily quiet, Tsurugi's words clearly affecting him. "I need some time alone, but...I'll tell you what I can later. For now...I just want to rest."

"...All right. Get some rest, Tenma." Tsurugi reluctantly answered. He didn't want to leave him alone after what just happened, but maybe it's for the best. So Tsurugi slowly walked towards the door, Tenma moving aside for him. "Oh, and Tsurugi."

The navy-haired forward halted, his hand just inches from the doorknob. He looked at his silent friend, "Yeah?"

"Don't tell the others. Please."

Tsurugi was surprised, but somehow deep down he understood. Back in the day, he also didn't want anyone to know his real reason for joining Fifth Sector. But, this was different. This current situation was more urgent. It needed to be told to someone at least. If not, it won't stop. And Tenma will...

Tsurugi frowned. He didn't like to lie to his friend, but he had next to no choices at all. So, Tsurugi nodded at Tenma's request, mentally telling the brunet his apologies. "I understand."

Although he wasn't fully calm yet, Tenma sent him a weak smile. "Thanks." The guilt inside Tsurugi doubled in regret. But, he hid it and smiled back at the midfielder. "I'll see you later."

Tenma slowly nodded. "Yeah. See you."

* * *

**A/N: And, that's it for now folks! I'm sorry if it's short. I think I will have Chapter 9 up next week. I should be available, but who knows. Maybe there's a surprise exam, or maybe there's something I need to do. I'm very sorry it took so long to publish the chapters. The Wi-Fi's not fast enough. And FFN likes to play the 'waiting' game with me. Either that, or the 'starting over again' game. But hopefully, I'll see you next week! Fingers crossed!**


	9. A Broken Promise

**A/N: Hi, I'm back! **

**First of all, I'm SOO TERRIBLY SORRY for the long update. I didn't expect it to be this long. I was planning to update last Thursday, but until now has been a total jerk (sorry for the language, I'm just feeling like it) to me. It won't let me submit my document in the Doc Manager for days! I finally succeeded with my phone today, and edited it in my laptop. That's my reason for not updating this 'till now. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaim: I, Lyra M.R, disclaim! I only own my OCs, you hear that? O.C.s! More than one!**

* * *

The night went by surprisingly quick. The entire dinner itself was nothing less than delectable, but with the fret of their two missing friends weighing in their minds, they couldn't really enjoy it to the fullest. The entire team wasn't inattentive enough not to notice them being gone for two hours. With their lava cake and ice cream finished, they could finally retreat to their rooms. Shindou had a mind of finding Tsurugi and Tenma and find what exactly is going on.

As they left their table, Endou approached him with a solemn look. "You're going to look for them, aren't you?"

"Yes, Coach." Shindou replied.

"I'll look for Tenma. You try and find Tsurugi. Is that okay?"

Shindou gave him a firm nod. It was then that Shinsuke and Aoi approached them. "Are you guys going to look for Tenma? We want to help too!" Shinsuke exclaimed. Aoi nodded beside him. "Please!"

Shindou and Endou looked at each other, before nodding back on the two first-years. "Okay, then. Aoi, you come with me. We'll search for Tenma. Shinsuke and Shindou, you two will search for Tsurugi. Everybody clear?"

"Yes!"

* * *

"Shindou-senpai, where do you think they are?" Shinsuke asked to his senior.

While checking the other end of the hall, they wondered where Tsurugi and Tenma could have gone.

Shindou shook his head, "I don't know. But knowing Tsurugi, he'd probably followed Tenma and Kenta-san."

"Yeah, he would. Then, if we find Tsurugi we'll also find Tenma?"

"Maybe. Let's just find him and see for ourselves."

They continued to walk forward, sometimes peeking through the doors and corners. After fifteen minutes of Tsurugi-less searching, they decided to stop and think for a while. "Where could they be?" Shinsuke muttered worriedly. Shindou looked around him. "This house is big." He sighed. "It'll be hard to find those two."

Shinsuke pouted. "Tenma should've given us a map of this place. That would save us a lot of-"

"Wait, Shinsuke." The defender stopped. He looked at his senior, confused. Shindou was observing the left side of the hallway. "What is-"

Shindou ignored his junior, putting one finger over his mouth. "Ssh!" That made Shinsuke goes quiet. He looked at Shindou's line of sight, trying to find something. He noticed a dark figure walking towards them, his hands in its pockets. His hair was a little spiky, and he seemed to wear a purple cape.

Purple cape? Shinsuke's eyes widened. There was only one person he knew that always wore a purple cape.

"Tsurugi!"

* * *

He halted when he heard his name. He turned his head up to see two people running to him. He instantly recognized them, "Shindou-senpai, Shinsuke."

Shindou stopped before him, "Where have you been?" He said angrily. "You suddenly disappeared!"

"That's right, and you missed dinner too!" Shinsuke added. "More importantly, where's Tenma?" Tsurugi frowned and, with an exhausted tone, said, "Don't look for him. He wants to be alone."

"Alone? Did something happen?" Shinsuke asked. "Where is he? He shouldn't be alone."

"Tsurugi, where's Tenma?" Shindou asked. Tsurugi narrowed his eyes at them before turning his head down. "Leave him alone. I mean it." He said with a sad tone. That concerned both Shindou and Shinsuke. Sad was something Tsurugi rarely showed to them, if not never.

"What's wrong, Tsurugi?"

Tsurugi sighed, "I'm going now."

"Tsurugi, stop! Where's Tenma?" Shindou reached for Tsurugi, though the boy quickly pulled away, uninterested. However, he failed to notice Shinsuke. The boy ran behind him and jumped on his back, keeping a tight hold on him as the other tried to get him off immediately like he was fending off a mad monkey.

"Tell us where Tenma is, Tsurugi!" Shinsuke yelled.

"G-Get off! You're crazy!" Tsurugi yelled back.

"Well, you're a jerk!" Shinsuke said. "It's obvious something's wrong with Tenma, but you won't even bother to help him!"

A quick response came from Tsurugi's mouth. "It's not like I don't want to help him! He-" Then silence. Tsurugi caught himself just before he could say anything that he would regret, managing to grab away a dumbfounded Shinsuke. "Just leave him alone, okay?"

He placed the small boy down, not wanting to be pressed anymore, but Shindou couldn't let go of what he had just said.

"Tsurugi, at least give us a hint as to what's going on. Do you really think it's best we just leave things be?" Shindou asked, and he could see that Tsurugi did not at all think of it as the best decision. He heard him curse a bit before finally giving a comprehensible reply.

"Fine, but you didn't hear this from me." Tsurugi said, giving in to their demands without much thought. It wasn't like he could pretend that nothing happened anyway. He did his best to explain everything, occasionally stumbling on his own words because he just didn't know the right ones to say.

"...Is that true? What you just told us, that was all true?" Shindou said in disbelief. Tsurugi slowly nodded, confirming his senior's question.

"No way..." Shinsuke said. "But Tenma always looked happy around us."

"And maybe that was the point." Tsurugi stated with shame.

Shindou gritted his teeth and balled his fists. "He should've told us! That way, we could help him. Why didn't I realize it!?" They were all angry, each seething furiously until Shinsuke finally gasket. "We need to help him! We can't just let that man keep hurting Tenma!"

"We need to tell everyone about this." Shindou suggested, thinking a little more rationally.

"Wh- No! Tenma asked me to keep this a secret. You can't tell this to anyone!" Tsurugi said to both their shock and anger. "And let him keep hurting Tenma? We should be telling people this!" Shinsuke reasoned. "It's not like he'll stop if we don't!"

"I know he asked you to keep it a secret Tsurugi, but even you should know that that's the worst thing to do for this situation." Shindou said. "He needs someone. Now more than ever."

"Ugh, fine! But just Coach. This is Tenma's business. If anyone should tell the team about this… it has to be him." Tsurugi adamantly insisted. He felt that Tenma should be given that much. "No. It has to be the whole team." Shindou insisted, not feeling that it was right to keep them in the dark, especially when Tenma needed help.

"...I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone. You can't expect me to break that."

"You've already broken it by telling us." Shindou pointed out. When Tsurugi didn't reply, he continued. "You don't think this is a good idea, do you?"

"Of course not, I'm not stupid." He said before going silent. He was at an impasse. Should he break his word or keep it? Shindou watched him as he struggled to make a decision. He asked, "Do you think keeping this from the team is going to help Tenma?"

"...no. How can it?" he tiredly replied.

"What's more important to you?" Shindou then asked. Tsurugi didn't answer as he contemplated on his question.

"Tenma can't know." Was Tsurugi's term. Shindou and Shinsuke nodded. The latter didn't look very happy with it, grumbling in his own words, but they both accepted.

* * *

"Great. Not only Tenma-kun and Tsurugi-kun are missing, but now Shindou-senpai and Shinsuke-kun are too." Kariya stated, lying down on his bed with his head placed on top of his hands.

When the boys were halfway to their room, all of them noticed that five people were missing. The team already knew that Tenma left dinner with Kenta. He said that he had 'something to do' and went off. Tsurugi disappeared mysteriously after that, though most of them already guessed why. But, now three more people joined them.

Hikaru, whose bed was beside Kariya's, smiled sheepishly. "Maybe they went searching for Tenma. You know how they are."

Kariya snorted, "In a big house like this? They're going to be a while."

"And you expect them to just give up trying?"

"We're back." With the devil's timing, the door opened smoothly and in came the the subjects of their conversation.

Hikaru grinned at seeing who it was, "Shindou-senpai, Shinsuke, Tsurugi!"

"We're back, Hikaru." Shinsuke said, trying not to sound so down.

Kirino scolded, "Shindou! Where have you been? We were worried, you know." The said boy sent a small smile at his friend.

"Sorry, Kirino. We were searching for Tenma and Tsurugi. And as you can see," he gestured to the navy-haired forward beside him. "We found him."

"Tsurugi, why did you miss dinner? It was delicious, especially the ice cream!" Amagi said, rubbing his stomach. Tsurugi was unimpressed.

Sangoku chuckled, "If you want, just ask Kenta-san for your dinner. One of the servants kept it in case you return."

"All right." Tsurugi answered with his usual 'I don't care' tone.

A few feet away, Kariya lazily watched them from his bed, noticing how unusually quiet Shinsuke was and their clearly troubled tones and expressions were too obvious, even for him.

"So where's Tenma-kun? Did you find him?"

Kurumada caught on quick and asked, "Now that you mention it, I haven't seen him since dinner. Where is he?"

Shinsuke and the other two frowned. "Um, about that..." The smaller boy started nervously.

"He's in his room." Tsurugi replied, keeping his composure. It wasn't entirely true, but it also wasn't a lie. He was too busy focusing on Tenma to figure out what room they were in.

"Why did he miss dinner? I thought he was looking forward to it." Kurama asked.

Now that they were here, Shindou found himself unable to repeat Tsurugi's words. Each step closer to the room tied more knots in his stomach. Now it was keeping him from even speaking. He eyed at Shinsuke and as if sensing his thoughts, backed away. A clear and understandable answer. Tsurugi followed without even looking. Shindou was not surprised. He had already made it clear that he would not have any further part in his decision.

The team noticed the tension between the three, but no one pointed it out. Whatever it was, they were willing to wait until they were ready to say it.

"We're back." Endou interrupted. He and Aoi came in, both looking worried and serious. Seeing that Shindou had returned as well, Aoi quickly asked, "So what was it you wanted to tell the team?"

Any attempt to stall the news was gone. Aoi stayed in front of the door, as if worried they might try to bolt after her question. "You sounded really serious on the phone."

"Ah, about that." Shindou said. "You all noticed how weird Tenma's been acting since we got here, right?"

"Of course. It's more than the usual." Hayami joked. No ill will was meant. Knowing Hamano, Shindou knew that he was only trying to loosen up stifling atmosphere in the room. The forced chuckled from his lips was evident that it wasn't successful.

"It's…" Shindou said. Where could he start? No, how could he even say this? Like a child taking a shot, he stopped thinking and just went with it. "Tenma's father is abusing him."

* * *

**A/N: And, that's it folks! So, how was the chapter? Did it satisfy you? **

**Oh, and good news by the way. My seniors are going to have finals soon, so the teachers were very kind to give us a long break starting this Thursday! We'll go back to school on May 11th. Of course, there's bound to be a lot of homework but hey it's a small price to pay. That means I'll have more free time to write and update for you all! Hopefully. FINGERS CROSSED, EVERYONE!**

**Reviews, suggestions or ideas are welcome and appreciated! Go ahead! Thank you for your kindness, support and patience with me, by the way. ^^**


	10. Explanation

**A/N: Chapter 10 is here, people! Wait. It's the tenth chapter already? Wow, time flies so fast. **

**As I told you, I'm now having a break from school!**

**"Oh, so you have a lot of homework then?"**

**Actually, NO! I don't have any homework! Well, except for one. But, it's pretty easy.**

**"Do not underestimate the power of homework, Lyra."**

**I know, I know. But, it's still going to be easy. Anyway, enjoy the ride! **

**"Ride? What ride?"**

**It's just an ****expression. And a song from Krewella. It's pretty catchy, you know.**

**"Um, no. I don't know."**

**Who are you, anyway? **

**"Someone you should know."**

**Huh? Whatever.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Inazuma Eleven nor its characters. I just own my OCs. Got it? **

**"No."**

**Yes? Okay**

* * *

Shock set into to the air as everyone tried to process his quick words. Hikaru and Kariya slowly got off from their beds and approached them with the rest of the team. Then from beside him, inflamed, their coach simply said what everyone else was thinking, "What?"

With all eyes on him, Shindou darted back looks to the only two others who already knew. Tsurugi kept his back turned and it almost seemed like Shinsuke was trying to wriggle away.

"I...heard it from one of the people here." Shindou tried to go on. Endou, who was clearly seething from the news, narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Who, exactly?"

Shindou and Shinsuke winced at their coach's cold tone while Tsurugi just lowered his head. The navy-haired forward deliberated over what he should do. He thought that he would let Shindou do the talking, but now the said midfielder's clearly in a pinch.

"...Me." The striker then abruptly said out loud, to the surprise of his two companions. The room went quiet, as if it was in a stand-still. Tsurugi could feel everyone's shocked stares behind him. With Shindou's case, he could hear him asking what was he doing. He almost wanted to chuckle, seeing that this situation was somewhat familiar. Not surprised that Tsurugi was the first to know, Endou carefully asked, "How did you know, Tsurugi?"

The said boy sighed before turning to face his coach, determined to tell them everything. He casted quick glances at the team, eyes narrowed. He needed to be wary of their reactions, so he had to explain this carefully.

"I was suspicious at how weird Tenma's been acting lately, so I wanted to investigate. So when Tenma and Kenta-san left dinner, I followed them and… they stopped at a room that looked like a study. Tenma went inside and I overheard someone yelling at Tenma. When he came out, he was crying." Tsurugi said slowly, again casting glances at everyone in the room. "It was Tenma's father. He said he had disowned him. He was slapping it into Tenma the whole time…"

As expected, almost all of them widened their eyes in shock, even more so when he said the word 'disown'. Some tried to look calm, but desperately failed. The bubble that was around them, the bubble that they had unknowingly created so that they couldn't see what was wrong, was now ready to pop now. In Endou's case, it was a time bomb. Tsurugi could hear it ticking faster by the second.

"Tenma asked me to keep it a secret from you all so...don't mention any of this to him." Tsurugi ended, deciding not to tell the part when Tenma bolted away and snapped at him. He did make a promise with the brunet. While he broke it literally minutes later, at least this way, he could still keep some of it.

The room stayed silent. Tsurugi looked at his coach and friends around him. They were apparently horrified, his words sinking into their minds. The striker closed his eyes, sighing internally. _"Any second now."_

"Tsurugi."

The boy slowly opened his eyes, before turning back to his coach. "Yes?"

"Is that true?" The coach asked with venom in his tone. Tsurugi suppressed the urge to wince and sadly nodded, "...yes, Coach. All of it is true."

Shindou, who stood back the whole time with Shinsuke, stepped forward to his coach and friends. "After that, we found Tsurugi in the hallway and made him tell us everything. The rest...you already know." he added sadly.

Shinsuke tried his best not to cry, even when his tears were already visible. "That's cruel. Doing that to Tenma...he doesn't deserve it at all! Not one bit!" the defender cried. Shindou looked back at his junior, feeling the same way. "Shinsuke…"

Behind them, the bubble surrounding the team finally popped.

"How dare he…" Kariya muttered, balling up his fists. Shinsuke winced at the amount of acidity in his tone. The defender's bangs covered his cold eyes and he gritted his teeth.

"I won't forgive him." Kariya said with a low voice, and he quickly looked up to the trio before him, "Like hell I'll forgive someone like him!" he yelled angrily.

"That's enough, Kariya." Endou sternly said, much to boy's vexation. Everyone turned to their coach, shocked. "What do you mean, 'That's enough'!?" Kariya asked, his patience running thin. "Didn't you hear what he just said? That bastard didn't just hit Tenma! What he's doing isn't something that just goes away!"

"I know that!" Endou snapped at him. Kariya gasped quietly, surprised at Endou's sudden change of behaviour. Endou blinked, finally realizing what he had done. The brunet sighed, before looking at his team.

"But that's why right now, we need to keep a cool head. I know everyone's angry about it-"

"More like furious about it." Kariya muttered. Behind him, everyone slowly nodded.

Endou suppressed the urge to sigh again, and ignored the teal-haired defender's interruption. "-but we can't let our anger take us to the wrong path. Tenma proved that a lot of times already." Endou reassured them with a small smile. Everyone was still very agitated, but they managed to process his words and take in a breath. Noticing his team being slightly calmer, Endou continued. "Anyway, we should tell this to the police now."

"Wait, what? You can't do that!" To everyone's surprise, it was Tsurugi who voiced the objection. "Didn't you hear what I said earlier? We can't tell this to anyone!"

"Why not? Didn't you tell what had happened so we could help Tenma?" Kurumada said, a little frustrated at his junior's excuses.

"Yeah, but not like this! Tenma asked me to keep it a secret, remember? He doesn't want this spread around!" Tsurugi explained again.

"So what do you expect us to then, Tsurugi?" Endou said. "Informing this to the police should help Tenma greatly. If you're worried about Tenma's father not being caught, it's fine. I know someone who was a great detective. He helped me many times before. Now wouldn't be any different. You can trust him."

"N-No, it's not that!" Tsurugi looked down, trying find the right words. "Look, at least he should get to decide. Let me talk to him about this." He reasoned to the team. Everyone looked at each other, clearly troubled about Tsurugi's suggestion. Endou furrowed his eyebrows, "Are you sure?"

Tsurugi nodded with confidence. "Yes." Endou studied the striker for a minute, before exhaling his breath. The coach visibly relaxed a little, smiling at the first-year in front of him. "All right, go to him. He might need some company, after all." Everyone, including Tsurugi, looked at him, surprised. Endou smiled again, before suddenly turning serious. "But, if something goes wrong, tell us immediately. That's an order."

Tsurugi was speechless. Yes, he did expect the coach to give him permission. But, he wasn't entirely betting on it. And he was surprised for the umpteenth time that day at how people can quickly change their behaviour. But, he shook those thoughts out of his head, and nodded at his coach.

"Yes, Coach."

* * *

**A/N:** **Sorry if it's short, what do you think?**

**"I don't know."**

**You don't know what you think?**

**"No."**

**Oh. ****The next chapter should be here next week. But, no promises. Finals are coming up, so I'm going to be pretty busy.**

**"Really?"**

**Yes. But seriously, who are you?**

**"I told you and I quote, 'Someone you should know.'"**

**Why don't you just skip the riddles and just tell me?**

**"Okay. I am-"**


	11. Some Company

**A/N: Hi, y'all! So, this is the eleventh chapter-**

**"Obviously."**

**-and, thank you for all of the reviews you gave me. I appreciate it a lot! Anyway, enjoy the show!**

**"Show?"**

**...it's just an expression.**

**"What she said."**

**Hey!**

**"Disclaimer?"**

**Oh, yeah.**

**Disclaimer: I DISCLAIM!**

**"...that's it?"**

**Too lazy, don't judge me.**

**"Noted."**

* * *

The room was quiet and completely draped in the pitch dark as always. It made sleeping easier, but it made waking up hard. He couldn't tell whether he was awake or still dreaming and he could say the same about the time. How many times had he accidentally overslept because he had thought that it was still midnight when it was already closing noon?

"...what time is it?" he grumbled, not that he cared. He was drowsy and just wanted to go back to sleep. Then there it was again. A noise of some sort; some rhythmic taps. In no way was that the usual squeak from the old walls. The racket continued until finally, with a loud groan, Tenma dragged out his feet and made his to wherever the noise was coming from.

Once he touched the cold surface of the wooden door, which he could feel quake with the noise, he instinctively felt for the door's knob again.

"It better be morning, Kenta…" He hissed from the sudden bright light hitting his eyes between the tiny gaps of the door.

"It's actually half-past eleven." The voice told him from the other side. It took a minute to process his words. Then Tenma jumped, rubbed his eyes, put on the best smile he could that wasn't so tired or dripping with drool.

"S-Sorry. What is it, Tsurugi?" Tenma asked, acting like nothing happened earlier. Tsurugi slowly took in his friend's appearance. It seemed like the brunet slept right after he left, but judging by the dark circles under his eyes, he hadn't slept enough. Speaking of his eyes, they appeared to be a little red. Tear-streaks were also quite visible, but not entirely noticeable. _He must've been crying again_, Tsurugi sadly thought.

But, the striker pushed those thoughts aside for the moment and simply smiled back. "Nothing, I was just wondering if you want some company."

Tenma blinked at his statement, "At this hour? Shouldn't you be sleeping?" the brunet asked. Tsurugi chuckled, shaking his head. "It's fine. I'm used to staying up past midnight anyway."

The midfielder frowned, looking concerned. "Really? That's not actually a healthy thing to do."

Tsurugi gave him a reassuring smile, "Don't worry, that's in the past. I've been having more than enough sleep nowadays." And, that was the truth. Sleep didn't really come to him that easily, especially after his brother's accident. He started to sleep like normal when he joined the team, more specifically after the Teikoku match.

Tenma looked quite skeptical, but he was too tired to argue even more. "All right, if you say so." He then opened the door wider for the striker. "Come in." he said, pointing to the left of the quiet room. "There's an extra bed here for sleepovers. You can stay there." Tsurugi nodded, and took the first few minutes to take in how dark it was. He could barely see a thing.

Instinctively, he flipped a nearby switch to brighten the room. The boy next to him, still adjusting to the light, let out another irritated 'hissing' sound. Tsurugi quickly shut it off, apologizing for that.

"Don't do that!" He scolded. Tsurugi couldn't have picked a worse time to talk Tenma. As he tried, he was clearly more cranky than usual. Most people would if their sleep was suddenly disturbed.

"Did you eat dinner?" Tsurugi asked, recalling the fact that both of them missed it. Tenma blinked, clearly still sleepy.

"Huh? Oh yeah, Kenta came here and gave it to me when you left. It was delicious." he answered. Tsurugi smiled, "I see." He himself forgot to eat it, but that was okay. He survived God Eden; surely he could survive a dinner-less night. But pushing that aside, Tsurugi remembered the reason he came here.

"I actually wanted to ask to you something." He confessed as he made his way to the bed. "Why haven't you told anyone else about this?"

When Tenma didn't answer, Tsurugi decided to ask something else. "Have you thought about telling the police?"

Tenma didn't answer again. From the sounds fumbling blankets, he wondered if Tenma was listening or just focusing to get to his bed.

"Are you listening?" Tsurugi asked. It was then his foot hit something. He placed down his hand to feel what it was. The answer was a thick soft quilt blanket. Pressing down his fingers, it was like touching a warm cloud. He sat down on top of it.

"...I am." Tenma then answered. It was muffled, so Tsurugi could only guess that he had covered himself under his blanket. "But, he's...still my dad."

"Even when he treats you like that?" There was a mix of confusion and anger there that they both sensed. Neither really understood Tenma's answer.

"He wasn't always like that." Another flimsy answer from Tenma that neither understood.

"Does that part matter?" Tsurugi asked him. His tone said that he didn't think it was. A logical side of Tenma understood, but his other more emotional side was still taking its time to grasp it.

"I guess it shouldn't but to me it does." He honestly replied. "I know it's stupid, you heard it yourself. He's not my dad anymore, neither am I his son. But, I just...can't," Tenma adjusted his position under his blanket before continuing, "A part of me agrees with you, but I just can't bring myself to tell anyone."

Now finally having adjusted to the dimness in the room, Tsurugi stared sadly at the bundle on the bed beside him. "What if...I did it then? Would you mind?"

A low mumble was his only response. It wasn't a consent or disagreement, just that. Tsurugi wasn't sure if that was even an answer.

"Yes or no. It's a simple question." Tsurugi said. When there was no response, he got up. To Tenma's surprise, the striker sat by his bedside.

"Tenma, let me help you. Please." Tenma blinked. Never had he heard Tsurugi beg before. It surprised him enough that he finally wriggled out of his blankets to look to where he was.

"I...I'm sorry, Tsurugi." A needless apology in Tsurugi's opinion. Tenma was in no way at any fault. "Listen. It's not like I live here anymore. I live with Aki-nee now, my dad can't do anything there. I'm happy, honestly."

"You don't sound like it." Tsurugi said. He could hear Tenma laugh.

"Yeah...but what can I do?"

"Tell someone! Someone who can help you! Coach, Kidou-san, Aki-san…!" Tsurugi was saying whatever name came to his head. "Heck, maybe even Gouenji-san can help."

"It's none of their business. I don't want to get them involved, that includes you." Tenma simply stated, turning away from the navy-haired boy. Tsurugi stared dumbfounded at the brunet before him. "None of my business? Tenma, you can't possibly expect me to just sit back and watch."

Tenma shifted a bit, obviously uncomfortable with the whole situation. But, Tsurugi swore that he heard a very quiet _"I know."_ from him. Before the striker could say anything though, Tenma beat him to it.

"L-Let's talk this out tomorrow, okay? It's almost midnight, we both need our sleep." he suggested, turning towards his friend.

_'Right now, I could care less about sleep.'_ Tsurugi thought, suppressing the urge to say it out loud. But, he knew that Tenma was the exact opposite. The brunet was tired, both physically and mentally. So it was no wonder that he really wanted to end this conversation and sleep. With that in mind, Tsurugi reluctantly nodded at his friend's suggestion.

"All right," he stood up from the bed, making his way to the door. "Sleep well, Tenma."

"You too, Tsurugi."

Giving away a dejected sigh, Tsurugi got up, stopping just a moment to look back at Tenma before finally showing himself out. It was times like this he wished that he had been gifted with something as simple as being able to talk properly with another person. Negotiation or encouragement…if he had been skilled one of either then perhaps he could have-

His train of thought stopped with the towering figure in front of him. Every hair in his body jumped as he instinctively stepped back from the man.

It was Tenma's father.

Tsurugi's luck couldn't be worse.

* * *

**A/N: SOOOOO, what do you think? Is it good? Bad? Neither? All of the above? Is it-**

**"Slow down, slow down."**

***sighs* Fine. So?**

**"..."**

**Um, so?**

**"I'll leave it up to them."**

**What? Wait-**

**"Please review this chapter and tell her your opinion. She's dying of curiosity."**

**I'm not dying of-**

**"Anyway, thanks for reading. She'll have the next chapter by next week."**

**Stop deciding things for me!**

**"...she just said it's unofficial though. So, don't get your hopes up too high."**

**WHO ARE YOU EXACTLY?**

**"*sighs* Someone you should know. How many times have I told you that?"**

**Apparently not enough. **


	12. The Threat

**A/N: Hey, guys! I'm sorry that I'm late, but here's the new chapter of the story!**

**"You're almost a week late."**

**I told you I'm sorry, Mr. Grumpypants.**

**"That's a rude nickname."**

**Well, it seems quite fitting to me. Anyway, I have something to tell you. But, I'll tell you at the bottom later!**

**"Bottom?"**

**At the end of the story. Geez, I thought you were smarter than this.**

**"Actually, I'm-"**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

**"Um, disclaimer?"**

**I disclaim!**

**"...That's all you got?"**

**Shut up.**

**"Oooh, watch your tongue there."**

* * *

"...I'm just heading back to my room." Tsurugi told him flatly. He could hear the slight, rushed panic in his tone. He meant to walk pass him, but with the first step, Tenma's father took another to intercept him.

The man stared down at him, reading him fast like he was a simple children's book. "...Tsurugi, right?" He said. The surprise and confusion on his face was too obvious for the man. He could practically hear all the internal questions running through his mind. '_How?'_ was undoubtedly the prevailing one.

"I recognized your voice," He answered, deciding to skip over the tiresome predictable question. "You were there, weren't you?"

Many things scared Tsurugi if he could be completely honest. In joining Fifth Sector, however, he learned to face all of it head on. At the end of it, his fears either ceased or turned into indifference. His fear of the darkness, for instance, vanished through the regular lonely nights and any fear he had for pain he learned to disregard and ignore thanks to the routinely hellish training he forced himself to endure. Fear had become something he had conquered; that was what he had believed up until now.

For the first time in years, he was scared. Scared to give a simple answer. Scared for what it might mean to the horrid man in front of him. Scared at what he might do if knew as much as he did.

"Never mind, I suppose it doesn't matter." He said.

Now that, Tsurugi couldn't ignore - no matter how scared he was.

"Doesn't matter?! How could Tenma not matter? Oh, right, he's not your kid, is he?" Tsurugi snapped at him, keeping down any unease when he failed to see Tenma's father stir.

"If you think someone will hear you, you're wrong," He told to him in slight annoyance over the stupidity he saw in the boy's actions. "Your classmates are ways down the corridor and most of the rooms are blocked behind thick walls and doors. And if someone did hear, it would be the help and they're used to childish tantrums."

Tsurugi sincerely doubted that it was just tantrums that they were used to.

"You've also misunderstood something. Tenma is my child whether I like it or not." He sighed with clear annoyance.

"What? But, you said-"

"Do not interrupt me." The man threatened Tsurugi, not with a yell or shout, but in a low, hushed but furious voice. "That was simply a reminder of what he _is_ to me. But under legal law, he is still my child."

There was no warmth when he said 'child.' Tsurugi had never heard the word said in such a way before. He glared back at the man in disgust and contempt and a wish that he had brought a soccer ball with him.

"What does the law matter to you anyway? I'm pretty sure what you're doing is against it."

"You mean sending Tenma away to live happily with his relative?" He asked. Initially, he was met with an irritated glare from Tsurugi, but soon it faded along with the blood under his skin. Tsurugi understood what he had been saying. "If that is against the law, maybe it would be good for him to return. The help do miss him and I can't stand my own child being bullied at his school."

"Bullied?! Tenma's happy in Raimon!" Tsurugi shouted at him.

"Even when his teammates speak so low of him? When his so-called 'friends' hate him?" The man pointed out.

Tsurugi looked at him, clearly appalled. "Wha-We don't hate him!"

"Don't lie to me, kid. I've heard of what you did when you first met him," he said.

Tsurugi was nonplussed, he couldn't think of a way to say something back. He didn't want to admit it, but that man was actually right. He couldn't deny that he absolutely despised Tenma when they first met. And the fact that Shindou and the other seniors were pretty annoyed by him back then didn't actually help.

"...How did you find out?"

"I have my resources. Your matches were useful too, seeing your sloppy teamwork literally made my day."

"But, that's in the past! We're a great team now; we even won Holy Road!" Tsurugi said. "And none of us hate Tenma, he's our best friend!"

"And yet, you still bully him nonetheless." Tenma's father said, frustrated.

Tsurugi gritted his teeth, "Now it seems that _you_ don't-" '_-understand me.' _was what the striker would say but he was silenced by a fierce glare from the man before him. His eyes were full of rage and he was deadly serious.

"Listen, kid. If you tell anyone about what you heard," The man slowly threatened. "I promise that I will make Tenma's life harder than it already is."

Tsurugi's eyes widened. His body trembled in fear and his face started to sweat. The striker wouldn't admit it directly, but this man had managed to bring all of his supposedly conquered fear back into him. But it wasn't fear of darkness or fear of pain. No, it was something Tsurugi hasn't felt in a long time. Fear for a person; for a friend. Tsurugi couldn't even begin to imagine what man was thinking on doing to Tenma, his own blood.

Tenma's father slowly smirked. "I'm sure it would easy to bribe the principal to get him back. Just a quick phone call away and he's mine," he leaned back from Tsurugi and started to walk pass him. "If you want the best for Tenma, I suggest you consider my words carefully." The man said with the calmest countenance as if his words were something of a business settlement, one Tsurugi had no choice but to sign whether he even knew it or not.

The man then bowed to him before leaving Tsurugi in complete distraught.

* * *

"He threatened you?!" Shinsuke half-yelled. He expected Tsurugi to come back with answers, not with a threat. The defender had the full mind of hunting down the man within the house and attacking him if he didn't have so much power over Tenma. Even just talking now was dangerous, the man made that much apparent.

Everyone was gathering at the back of the room. Aoi had called the other girls to join them when Tsurugi was with Tenma. Endou and the team told them what happened, and they didn't take it too well.

"...Yeah." Tsurugi frowned, still distraught over the whole thing. Shinsuke clenched his teeth, annoyed at the fact that their situation just got a lot harder. Beside him, Shindou looked at the striker expectantly. "What exactly did he say?" The midfielder asked, eyes narrowing.

"He said that if I tell what I heard to anyone, he _promised _to make Tenma's life more harder than it already is." The navy-haired forward didn't bother to sugar-coat it..

Shindou balled his fists, trying desperately to look calm but failed miserably. He then glanced at his friends. All of them had troubled looks on their faces, and they were clearly seething. If they were trying to be calm, well that ship had sailed. He could almost see steam coming from their ears.

"Harder than it already is…" Hikaru muttered, putting his hand under his chin. "What did he mean by that?"

"He probably meant something about Tenma that we don't know." _Something he refused to tell us. _Tsurugi scowled, not liking the idea of that.

"I didn't know Tenma-kun had a lot of secrets," Hayami stated with his head down, ashamed at the fact. Hamano nodded, "He didn't look like he had, so I never would've guessed," the second-year smiled sheepishly. "Kid had us fooled."

"Well, at least there's one thing I'm sure about now. This has gone way out of our hands." Endou said, disconsolate. As a captain once himself, he was used to being the one who helped solve problems. To pass it on to someone else was… difficult. "I'll tell this to Detective Onigawara. For now, we need to play along like we don't know anything until we leave."

Shinsuke was about to object, but Endou turned to him, giving a sharp glare. "If he gets suspicious, it'll be dangerous for Tenma. I don't like this any more than you do, but we can't take any risks."

The defender halted before sighing in defeat. "...Okay. But he'll help Tenma, right?"

"Yes, he will. He helped me many times before, so I'm certain." Endou did his best to beam out his ever famously boundless confidence with a smile. Inside, he was just as worried, but for now, he would have to settle with being able to calm some worry of the team.

It worked; everyone seemed to calm down a little. Some of them were still unsure, but they decided to trust their coach. Endou noticed their worry lessen, amused. He glanced at the clock behind them before clapping his hands.

"Now, let's go to sleep. It's already past midnight, we need our rest." The brunet then turned to the girls. "Haruna, you and the girls go back to your room. The rest of you," he gestured to the players. "Go to your bed and sleep."

* * *

**A/N: Congratulations, you just earned an 'Appreciation Award' from yours truly for reading this chapter until the end.**

**"So formal."**

**I swear, sometimes you sound like Loki himself.**

**"Loki, who's that?"**

**Moving on, I have some news to share to y'all. **

**"Entertain me."**

**Not you. Anyway, I probably won't update for a while.**

**"Why?"**

**Excellent question, 'Someone I should know'. And the answer is, finals are coming up.**

**"Finals?"**

**Exams. So, I may or may not be late at updating. And, I'm going to say sorry early if that happens.**

**"Okay then, say it."**

**I just did.**

**"No, you didn't."**

**So, wish me luck! Hopefully after exams are done, I'll go and update more often!**

**"Hopefully."**

**You don't need to repeat it, you know.**


	13. Wake-Up Call

**A/N: Hey, guys! How long has it been since I last updated?**

**"Dunno."**

**Good, I don't want to know anyway. Here's the chapter!**

**"..."**

**I can feel your glare, Mr. Mystery. So, stop it. And cut off the silent treatment.**

**"First of all, what kind of name is that? Second, what silent treatment?"**

**Haha, very funny. And to answer your question, it's a nickname. Oh, I also have some news for you all, so stick to the very end!**

**"Disclaimer: She disclaims."**

**Thanks, I was too lazy to do it myself.**

**"You're always lazy."**

**I can almost hear you snort when you said that. But no, I'm not always lazy.**

**"Oh yeah? Prove it."**

**I'm publishing this right now. And, I'm typing with a keyboard. And, I'm still talking to you.**

**"Ouch, that last one hurt."**

**Your welcome.**

* * *

**The next day,**

The loud rapping against the wooden door finally disrupted Tenma's sleep. He awoke with a moan, getting up to open it with an annoyed mumble.

"Tenma-sama, are you awake?" A muffled question said from beyond the door. Recognising it at once, Tenma opened it. "Morning, Kenta...what time is it?"

"It's seven in the morning."

"Really…?" If that was the time, Tenma would rather that Kenta had let him sleep.

"Breakfast will be ready in thirty minutes. I wanted to wake you up early so you could get some while it's fresh." Kenta answered, aware of his wish to sleep from the disgruntled look on his face. "We made your favorite."

Tenma's face lit, suddenly feeling more awake. "You mean-?!"

The butler smiled at the brunet's expression. "Yes, peach pancakes with a butter sauce topping."

"You should have said that from the start! I'll be there soon! Oh, could you also ask them to make-"

"Extra slices of peach and cream? Don't worry, they already know. I still remember, after all." Kenta assured. Then, unable to keep from worrying any longer, he asked, "How did it go last night?"

"Oh," Tenma's smile dropped and he sighed. "What you'd expect. He wasn't happy."

"I...I see. My apologies." he said. "You'll be early, right? Stop by the kitchen on your way. I'll ask them to prepare some hot chocolate for you."

"Thanks." Tenma smiled, accepting his apology. "You know me so well."

Kenta mentally frowned at that, but he still kept his smile. "Alright, I'll go call your friends now. Please excuse me."

"Uh, Kenta?" Tenma called to him just as he was leaving.

"Yes?" The butler asked. "Would you like to make another add-on?"

"Yeah. Can I call them instead?" Tenma asked. That confused Kenta.

"Certainly, but I can do it for you."

"Nah. I want to do it." Tenma answered. Kenta frowned, unsure if he should be concerned or not.

"If that is what you wish," he said, giving in. "but if there's anything bothering you, you can talk to me, alright?"

"Of course." The midfielder nodded.

Kenta still looked unsure, but he just smiled. "Then, I'll leave it to you Tenma-sama. Please be at the dining hall in twenty minutes with your friends."

The said boy grinned in return. "Sure! Thank you, Kenta." The butler gave him a nod before finally exiting the room.

On the other side, Kenta heard a muffled _"Wait, TWENTY MINUTES!?"_ behind him. A lot of quick footsteps - which he suspected was running - was heard also. He chuckled, flashing a genuine smile on his face.

Same old, same old.

* * *

"-nsuke, wake up." A voice said, carefully shaking the boy's shoulder.

"Ugh, g'way." the boy groaned, sinking deeper into the blanket.

"Shinsuke, wake up!" the voice said, louder this time - enough to make the said defender open his eyes halfway. He winced when the too bright light reached his eyes. It took a lot out of him to not close them and just duck under the covers once more. Ignoring the evil light, though, he saw a teal-haired boy standing above him, poking his body to wake him up.

"Leave me alone, Kariya." Shinsuke shooed his hand away, before covering his eyes with his arm - shielding him from the bright light.

"Come on, Shinsuke. Everyone's already up, see?" Kariya gestured to their friends behind him, doing their own activities. "Kenta-san's going to come here any minute to pick us up, all that's left is you."

Shinsuke yawned, "But, I'm still tired. I didn't sleep much yesterday."

"Why?"

"...I was thinking," Shinsuke uncovered his eyes, not caring anymore about the light. "About Tenma."

Kariya blinked, raising his eyebrows. "Oh." he muttered. Shinsuke frowned and averted his gaze to the other side of the bed. The tension around them grew. Kariya stared at the boy, unsure of what to do. He was not good at cheering people up, that's simply not his forte. Tenma's the expert on that, not him.

After a lot of thinking, Kariya eventually sighed. "Well, you're not alone on that one."

Shinsuke's eyes widened. He turned to Kariya, not believing what he just said. Seeing that look on his friend's face, Kariya couldn't help but smile.

"You think, after everything that happened yesterday, we won't think about it too?" the teal-haired boy put his hands on his hips, "I mean, I stayed awake 'till three because of it!"

Shinsuke looked down and bit his lip. "Sorry, I didn't think-"

"It's fine," Kariya reassured. "After all, it was a lot to take in."

Shinsuke nodded slightly, still pretty upset. "Yeah...I never thought Tenma experienced something like that." He began to sit up, his hand clutching the blanket. "He seemed so happy and cheery all the time."

Kariya scowled at that, before shrugging. "Well, you can't judge a book by its cover."

Shinsuke smiled a little, "You're right."

Kariya snorted. "I'm always right."

"Oh, really?" Shinsuke asked, amused.

"Yeah!" Kariya replied with a proud look.

"You're never right at names, though." Shinsuke pointed out, smirking.

"Hey!"

Meanwhile, their friends just looked at the happy duo with a smile. Even though they were all doing their separate activities, they still heard them loud and clear.

Besides, what they said was right. Almost all of them couldn't sleep because of yesterday. Even though they wanted sleep, it didn't come to them.

"Did we really judge him like that?" Shindou asked quietly, recalling what Kariya said.

_You can't judge a book by its cover._

Kirino turned to him, frowning. "...I guess we kind of did." He said with guilt. Beside him, Tsurugi just scowled. But before there was any more time to wallow, a knock interrupted their moment.

"Guys, are you awake?" a voice from behind asked and everyone jumped, startled.

"T-Tenma?" Shindou yelled, clearly surprised.

"Shindou-senpai! Yeah, it's me. Can I come in?"

"N-No! I mean, why?" Shindou asked, getting from his bed and heading to the door.

"Breakfast will be ready by seven thirty. I came here to wake you up. And, I just realised that you guys, the girls, Coach, and Otonashi-san all probably slept in separate rooms...and Kenta never told me where they were." There was a hint of embarrassment in his normal voice. It was a wonder to Shindou how normal Tenma could be after yesterday.

"The girls are in the next room. Coach after, then Otonashi-san."

"Gotcha! Thanks! And seriously, be ready soon! If you thought dinner was good, then I need to tell you that the breakfast is amazing!"

Shindou could hear Tenma walk away soon after. The faint knocking from outside indicated that Tenma had gone to wake their other friends. Shindou could imagine their surprise. Shindou turned to see all his friends, more or less still shocked from their little, early morning scare.

"So...breakfast anyone?"

...

"Really?"

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for sticking to the very end! Anyway, finals are coming up next week. And, my birthday is on the first day of it! Geez, I bet everyone will forget about it and only focus to the exam. Not that I could blame them, though. So, I probably won't be able to update next week. So sorry! My school has been giving me a lot of exams and homework for the past month. So, you can tell that I'm going to be more busy.**

**...**

**It's unusually quiet.**

**"Admit it that you actually like me."**

**Never, it's just quite...uneventful when you're not here.**

**"Ha, you do like me."**

**I can almost see you smirk, it's getting creepy. And no, I don't like you and I never will.**

**"I love you too."**


	14. Normal?

**A/N: OH MY GOD! Guys, I'm so terribly sorry for the long delay! **

**"Long delay? You're just going to call their suffering 'long delay'?"**

**I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I was busy, I'm still busy!**

**"On what?"**

**School!**

**"Yeah, what?"**

**There was a school festival a week after my finals. The other students had a school break, while I had to go to school to organise and plan the festival.**

**"Like, you're the one in charge or something?"**

**Exactly, "Someone-I-Should-Know"! Now that it's done, I'm finally on a proper school break. So, I got some time to publish this chapter. **

**"You made us wait a long time. At least for two weeks."**

**Sorry! And thank you so much for your patience, I appreciate it a lot! Here's my appreciation gift!**

**"Where?"**

**This! Chapter 14, enjoy!**

**"And, she disclaims."**

**Thank you, you should say that for me from now on.**

* * *

Shindou sighed. "Look, we all agreed to try and keep things normal, right? For now, let's just go with it."

Kariya didn't seem happy, almost looking ready to talk back. But he scratched his head instead, grabbing his clothes and heading quickly to the bathroom. "I call first dibs then."

Shindou turned to everyone else. There was one silent nod from each of them. There was another knock again. "Alright, they're all getting ready! Mind if I stay here with you guys for a while?"

"Sure. The room's messy though." Shindou warned, opening the door.

"It's fine. Hi, guys!" Tenma said, walking in. The others said 'hi' and 'hello' at the brunet, taking in his appearance. Tenma wore a simple blue shirt with a green collar and blue jeans. A white jacket was strapped around the waist.

Tenma's face was pretty clean as well. The team expected small tear streaks, but there were none. But, his eyes didn't seem happy. Even though he was smiling, it didn't reach his eyes. That saddened everyone on the inside.

"Hi, Tenma!" Shinsuke said, waving his hand at his friend.

Tenma waved back before saying, "Shinsuke! Why are you still in bed?"

"He just woke up." Kariya stated matter-of-factly from the bathroom.

"What are you doing, then? Hurry up and get ready! We don't have much time."

"Yeah, yeah!" Shinsuke said as he got up from the bed and headed straight to the bathroom.

Tenma shook his head at his friend, before looking at the room. "You call this 'messy'?" He asked, turning to Shindou.

"Well, yeah. The beds are not tidy, and the bathrooms are pretty wet. Look, some clothes are also scattered everywhere." Shindou stated.

Tenma chuckled. "First of all, the beds look pretty tidy to me. Only a few are actually messy." He gestured to Amagi, Hamano and Shinsuke's beds.

"Second, it's a bathroom. It's supposed to be wet." Tenma stated in a 'duh' tone. "And third, not that many clothes are scattered, only a few shirts and pants. I wouldn't be worried."

Shindou blinked in surprise, before he smiled in relief. "I see; that's good."

Looking at them quietly, to his friends' alarm, Tenma suddenly frowned. "You know, I don't think all of you will be ready by twenty minutes. I'll go ask Kenta if they can wait for a couple of more minutes."

"Oh, thanks." Shindou said, chuckling nervously. "But I'm sure the others will be ready soon. It'd be unfair to make them wait."

"I guess you're right. Still, I'll go tell them that some of you guys will be late." Tenma got up waving away as he left. "See you guys."

"See you." Everyone said, almost simultaneously, stopping a little at the end as everyone gave each other some awkward stares.

* * *

Tenma returned soon after having informed the cooks of his friends' tardiness. They were nice enough to pass him a cup of hot chocolate before he left. His friends seemed to be envious about it...all of his friends.

Tenma took another sip. He was more used to talking with Shinsuke, sometimes with Shindou and Tsurugi. With Hamano, Hayami, Kurumada...when Kurama made an attempt to talk to him, Tenma gave him a stare before he turned away.

He took another, very long sip before continuing to talk with Shinsuke. In a low whisper, he joked, "Did something happen yesterday?"

The last thing he expected was for Shinsuke to jump on his bed and began rambling on at how nothing was wrong. Such a reaction was not what he expected.

And it only continued later to the table. He was used to the team being lively. Given how gloomy it was when he first came, it was a welcoming change that had become normal. What he was not used to was being the center of that liveliness.

He was used to just talking with Aoi, Shinsuke, and sometimes Kariya and Tsurugi, though most of the time he talked for Tsurugi, but not with the rest. Admittedly, Kurama trying to start a conversation with him sparked some warning bells. Now that even Aoyama and Ichino were trying to talk to him, which he was somehow even more abnormal than Kurama's unexpected gesture, Tenma's head was now trying to come with some excuse to explain everything that was happening.

He wasn't stupid and with each minute of his friends still acting unlike them, Tenma began to wonder if he was being set-up for an elaborate prank or something along those lines.

For the moment, all Tenma could do was eat his pancakes and eye them with a trace of caution. He was half-certain now that something was going happen in that day.

"It seems like the rain has stopped." Shinsuke stated, voice muffled from chewing on his pancakes.

"That's right. It stopped while you were sleeping." Kenta said beside him, refilling the defender's hot chocolate.

"Then, that means we can leave right?" Hamano asked.

"Yes. The roads will be a bit slippery, but other than that there's no problem."

"I see. That's good." Tenma smiled; somewhat relieved they were able to leave so soon. His father would also be happy when he's not here. He won't be able to bother him anymore. But at the same time, he was kind of sad for leaving Kenta, Karin and everyone else here again. Tenma was so deep in thought; he didn't realize that his smile turned to a frown. He also didn't notice his team glancing worriedly.

Karin noticed the silence, so she said, "You should all start packing your belongings. You don't want anything to be left behind."

"We'll do that. Thanks for telling us." Endou said, and gratefully too. "Everyone, we'll leave by two, is that fine?"

There was another brief, awkward silence before Tsurugi promptly broke it.

"I'll go pack my stuff then." The striker got up from his seat to leave.

Following him, Tenma ate the last of his pancakes before excusing himself. "I'll start packing up too!"

He clearly was in a hurry to leave, but no one could blame him. Most nodded their heads and told Tenma that they would be finishing their breakfasts first before following them.

* * *

"Tsurugi!" The said boy mentally sighed. Tenma today was as energetic as ever; something that was comforting, troubling, or both. Soon, Tenma was at his side.

"Why are you following me? Aren't you supposed to be packing?"

"Yeah, but there's something I need to ask you; did something happen yesterday? Everyone's acting off."

Tsurugi suppressed the urge to raise his eyebrows in surprise. He wasn't expecting that from the brunet. He would have normally praised the boy for his unusual perceptiveness, but with the situation, he waved it off.

"They're just still giddy from dinner. Apparently it was THAT good." Tsurugi emphasized sarcastically, earning him a small chuckle from his amused friend.

"Well, it was that good." Tenma said, smirking a bit. Tsurugi raised an eyebrow. He stayed silent for a while before replying, "Yeah." _Maybe._

Technically, it wasn't a lie. He didn't eat dinner yesterday, so he didn't know the taste of it at all, but judging by his teammates' faces, it was probably good. Not to mention, his breakfast tasted phenomenal.

Tenma frowned for a second before he smiled, seemingly satisfied with his friend's answer. "I know. The chefs here never disappoint. They always make the best meals, I looked forward to it every day."

Tsurugi winced internally when he heard the past tense. "I see."

"Well, I have to go now. See you later, Tsurugi! Make sure you don't forget anything!" The midfielder ran ahead of him, waving his hand.

"Yeah." The striker said, watching the brunet's figure walked out of sight.

* * *

**A/N: Did you like it? I hope it's worth the long wait.**

**"It's not."**

**Now, that's just cruel.**

**"Your welcome, you deserved it."**

**That's even crueler. Anyway, I'll try to update more next week.**

**"Or maybe next month."**

**...Maybe.**

**"Wait, wha-"**

**Oh yeah, next week I have to go to school again. **

**"Again? For what?"**

**Mostly to adapt to our new class and all that stuff.**

**"For a week?"**

**Yeah, then I'll have another school break until July 28th.**

**"That's a pretty long time. I expect new chapters later."**

**Yeah, me too. But, you never know.**


	15. We'll Help

**A/N: ...I don't even want to ask.**

**"Thirty three days, seven hundred and ninety two hours, forty seven thousand five hundred and twenty minutes, two million eight hundred fifty one and two hundred seconds."**

**...**

**"That's how long we've been waiting."**

**...**

**"*sighs* What's your reason, this time?"**

**I went somewhere with an internet connection that had the speed of a turtle.**

**"For almost a month?"**

**No. For ten days.**

**"Then, why didn't you-"**

**I also had writer's block.**

**"...For twenty three days?"**

**Not every day. Just...most days.**

**"So, you were..?"**

**Writing this piece by piece. Slowly. But, writer's block prevented me from doing any progress.**

**"..."**

**A-Anyway, here's chapter fifteen!**

* * *

The ride home was as usual. Everyone was talking with each other as they always did. Tenma talked with Shinsuke, the two exchanging on how worried their families were. Shinsuke's parents weren't that worried, but Aki-nee was frantic the night before because Tenma had forgotten to call her. He mentally reminded himself to apologize to her once he got home.

"How long until we get home?" Hayami whined, because it must have been an hour now.

"We'll be there by four. We'll be stopping over at a place in the next hour." Furukabu informed, checking briefly with the bus' navigation system.

With not much else and still honestly a bit tired, Tenma decided to wait the rest of the trip out with a nap. His sleep wasn't all that good anyway, disturbed twice in a row of all times.

"I'm gonna sleep for a bit, Shinsuke." Tenma told him.

"Oh, okay."

He seemed down when Tenma said that, but he quickly struck up another conversation with Aoi. Tenma got himself comfortable, lied back, and did his best to relax and sleep.

* * *

Tsurugi couldn't help but smile at the sleeping brunet. He looked so peaceful, and Tsurugi intended to keep it that way. He wanted Tenma to be happy and continue being his happy-go-lucky self. He never wanted to see Tenma cry again, it doesn't suit him at all.

"He looks so innocent…" Shindou said out of the blue. Tsurugi blinked and turned to him, noticing that he was also looking at the brunet on the other side of the caravan.

The striker's eyes softened. "Yeah." he agreed.

"I want to keep him that way," Shindou continued. "Oblivious to the evil around him."

Tsurugi furrowed his eyebrows and turned back to Tenma. "We can't, he's already exposed to it a long time ago."

"...I know." Shindou sighed. Whether he liked it or not, he knew that Tsurugi was right. It's obvious that Tenma's father did this for years, and Tenma had been forced to take it all alone. On the outside, he seemed like a carefree person. But on the inside, he's a broken boy.

"But, we can help him. I know we can." Shindou said, determined.

"It won't be easy." Tsurugi frowned.

"I never said it would be." The midfielder said, flashing a small smile at the striker. Tsurugi rolled his eyes, before smiling back at his senior. "It's going to be a long and bumpy road, but I'll do it for Tenma."

"Me too." Shinsuke said. The duo almost jumped in surprise when they heard him.

"W-What?" Shindou asked, turning to the defender. Shinsuke was looking at them both, along with Aoi and the managers. All of them had a determined look on their faces.

"I'll do anything to help Tenma. He helped me many times before, I want to return the favor." Shinsuke stated, glancing at the sleeping brunet.

"Yeah, he's our best friend." Aoi smiled. "That goes without saying."

"Count us in! " Midori grinned, while Akane nodded her head. "We'll help too, Shin-sama."

"Guys…" Shindou said, smiling wide.

"Don't forget about us!" Kurumada half-shouted, referring to him and the other seniors. Sangoku nodded, agreeing with his friend.

"Tenma's our precious friend. He's the one who united the team in the first place, now it's our turn to help him." He stated, determined and serious at the same time.

"Sangoku-senpai..." Shindou's cheekbones were starting to hurt from grinning too long, but he didn't care. He was touched at how much his friends care for Tenma right now.

Tsurugi was no different. He was smiling gratefully at the people he can finally call friends. At first, he didn't trust them enough to tell them about _that_. But now, he was actually glad that he did.

Endou and Haruna had witnessed the conversation from the front of the caravan. Endou grinned, he was feeling very proud for every single one of them. It felt like he was seeing him and the old Raimon Eleven again. Haruna was tearing a bit, clearly touched at the talk they were having.

"That's the spirit." Endou told the team. Everyone's heads turned to him and not a single one of them didn't have a grin on their face. If it was possible, Endou grinned even wider.

"Do you mean everything you said?" He asked them. Barely five seconds passed when he got a loud "Yes!" from all of them.

"Alright, I'm counting on you." Endou said one more time. Tsurugi and the rest nodded without hesitation. For the first time since _that_, Tsurugi felt hope and thought that this could actually work. He turned to the sleeping boy and gave him a reassuring smile.

_'Don't worry, Tenma. We'll help you, every step of the way.'_

Unbeknownst to them all, a certain brunet slowly opened his eyes. He turned his body so he was facing the car interior rather than Shinsuke, so no one would notice that he was awake. But he was definitely awake.

And boy was he surprised at what he just heard.

* * *

"We're here!" Furukabu yelled, pulling in front of the school gate.

"Yay!" Shinsuke said, excited that they were finally home. The boy was jumping on his seat like a little kid.

"Someone's excited." Tenma chuckled, looking amused at the sight of his friend jumping up and down.

"Sorry, I can't help it." Shinsuke pouted at him playfully.

"Okay, everyone!" Endou stood up and clapped his hands to get the team's attention. "We're going to head to the clubroom first. After that, you can all go home. Understand?"

"Yes!" The team shouted.

"Alright then, let's go!"

* * *

The walk from the school gate to the clubroom was not that far, and it shouldn't take long for them to get to their destination. But with some of them still tired and stiff from the car ride that lasted for who knows how long, it took longer than usual for all of them to get to the clubroom.

But in the end, they finally reached their destination. Once everyone got inside, the soccer players began to put their soccer uniforms and other stuff they took for the match back into their lockers while the managers put away the towels and water bottles back to their original place. Endou and Haruna left earlier to go to Endou's office to take care of some paperwork, leaving all of the teenagers alone.

"What are you gonna do tomorrow, Tenma?" Shinsuke asked the brunet.

"Hm?" Tenma said, not looking up from his bag. "I don't know. Probably stay at home, I guess."

"Oh." Shinsuke looked down. He was silent for a while, before his eyes lit up and he turned back to Tenma. "Can I come to your place, then?"

"Sure. I have nothing to do, anyways." Tenma looked away from his bag and smiled at his friend, giving him a nod. Shinsuke grinned wide and fist-bumped the air. "Great! We'll have so much fun."

Tenma chuckled at his friend's excitement, "Yeah, we-"

"Can we come?" Hikaru said with Kariya by his side. Tenma blinked and turned to them. He was confused for a second, before he internally shrugged and covered his confusion with a grin and nodded. "Sure, the more the merrier!"

"Yes! I've never been to your house before." Hikaru grinned.

For a split second, Tenma's grin turned to a scowl and his eyes showed sadness. That sentence seemed to make Tenma remember something he didn't want to remember.

But it was gone as soon as it came as he quickly covered it with a grin and an almost forced chuckle. Even though it was visible for a split second, though, everyone in the room noticed. And they were terrified.

"Technically, it's not my house." Tenma shrugged. "It's an apartment. My cousin's the landlady, so she let me stay." He explained, smiling wide. But his smile slowly turned to a worried frown when he saw everyone's faces.

"Guys? What's wrong?"

Almost instantly, everyone's terrified expressions disappeared and all of them said, "Nothing!"

Tenma blinked in shock as they turned to each other, surprise that they did it again. As they did, Tenma's worried frown turned to an annoyed scowl. His friends were acting weird since the day before yesterday, and even though Tsurugi told him that it was because of dinner, Tenma didn't really believe that now.

"Okay, guys. What's really wrong?" Tenma said, crossing his arms. All of his friends turned to him with surprised and puzzled faces. "What do you mean?" Shinsuke asked him.

"You guys have been acting weird lately," Tenma lowered his eyebrows and squeezed them together. "And, I want to know why."

Everyone visibly stiffened at that, with some even gulping. Shindou and Tsurugi glanced at each other, both not knowing what to say. But then, Tsurugi's eyes lit up as a realization washed over him.

"I told you, it was because of dinner." He said to the brunet, recalling the talk they had earlier. Tsurugi tried to act and sound as calm as possible, so that Tenma wouldn't be even more curious. But, his 'reason' only made the midfielder frown.

"You're all acting this weird over a dinner?" He asked to his friends, sounding unconvinced. "I don't believe that."

Tsurugi sighed, "Tenma, it was-"

"You didn't even _eat_ dinner, Tsurugi." Tenma said, cutting the striker's sentence. "Even if all of this was because of our dinner, then you shouldn't be acting the same." He reasoned.

Tsurugi's eyes widened. He didn't remember telling Tenma that he didn't have dinner.

"Wha-"

"When you went out of my room, dinner was already finished. The dining hall would be empty when you came back, so of course you didn't have it. And even if you did, then I wouldn't see your dinner all wrapped up in the kitchen when I came in this morning." Tenma explained, cutting off Tsurugi's sentence again.

The striker went quiet, trying but failing to think of a comeback to that. Tenma scowled even deeper, getting a bit impatient. "So, _obviously_ this isn't because of dinner."

The room went quiet once again. Everyone was glancing frantically at each other, trying to think of something to tell their captain. After finally having enough with the silence, Tenma cut straight to the chase.

"You all talked about something while I was asleep. Something about 'helping me'," Tenma tilted his head slightly. "What do I need help with?"

"U-Uh, math! You said before that you were having trouble with it?" It was a blatant lie by Shinsuke, one that Tenma didn't buy.

"Math? That's not really something all of you should worry about. Seriously, ever since this morning, you guys have been…" Tenma eyes ran over to Tsurugi as he spoke, something in his mind clicked. His words strayed and slowly, Tenma realised what had happened.

"Tsurugi, did you...?!"

* * *

**A/N: So, that's the chapter for now.**

**"Are you going to not update for almost a month again?"**

**I'm sorry, but...probably yes.**

**"W-What?"**

**School. **

**"...What about it?"**

**In the next few months, I'll be busier than ever. I'll have more exams, more homework, more classes and more subjects. But, I'll have less time. So, I won't be focusing on this story like I did before. Of course, I'll still update...**

**"But?"**

***sighs* But, you might want to expect a wide time gap in between chapters.**

**"So, you're going to update less often?"**

**You could say that. **

**"..."**

**I'm sorry. But, I'll do my best! **

**"Okay. Good luck, then."**

**Thanks. Here, have a cookie! (::) (::)**

**"...That's two cookies."**

**Yeah! One for you and one for me!**

**"...Alright. I'll have one."**

**Here you go! *gives cookie***

**"Thanks." *tries the cookie* "Hmm, it's pretty good."**

**Hehe, thanks! **

**"The others might want one, though."**

**Oh yeah! Here, to all of my readers! Have a cookie! To show you my gratefulness and apology. How many of you are there, anyway?**

**"Thirty people put your story into their favourites." *still eating cookie* "Oh my God. This is good!"**

**Thirty, huh? I'll just give you one hundred and twenty.**

**(::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::)**


	16. Busted

**A/N: "Not bad, a new chapter just twelve days after the previous one."**

**I know, right? You guys gave me some motivation to write this really quick, so thank you. **

**"You're welcome."**

**You didn't help at all, actually.**

**"Ouch, I'm offended. I helped you a lot, you know!"**

**Ah, yes. I remember. You said the disclaimer for me more often now. Thank you.**

**"Not the 'Thank You' I was expecting, but it'll do."**

**If you don't mind, please say it for me again.**

**"Why should I?"**

**If you don't, I'll erase you from this story completely-**

**"She disclaims! None of this belongs to her except for the story idea! I repeat, she disclaims! She disclaims! She-"**

**Enough! **

* * *

When the striker bit his lip and slowly turned away in shame, Tenma's eyes widened as he got his answer. His mouth was agape and he wanted to scream, cry, perform a hissatsu on him, and storm out all at the same time. But Tenma controlled himself, saying that it would do him no good. So, he just gave his 'friend' the fiercest death glare he could do.

Tsurugi almost backed away in fear when he saw the brunet's glare. He expected him to snap and scream, but this was definitely much worse. He glanced around the room and saw almost everyone backing away from Tenma too. It's the first time all of them saw their captain _this _angry, and they were scared to the core.

"I _trusted_ you." Tenma hissed at him, eyes narrowing. Tsurugi felt like he was slapped at the face hard. He could clearly hear the brunet's pain.

Tenma looked like he wanted to say more, but he thought better of it. He closed his eyes and just sighed sadly. Everyone was a bit taken aback at that, at how Tenma could change personalities in just a few seconds.

The captain slowly opened his eyes and he gave Tsurugi a betrayed look. "...I trusted you, Tsurugi."

Tsurugi felt his own eyes tearing up. This was way worse than seeing Tenma cry. The Tenma he was seeing was not the cheerful Tenma he usually see every day. No, this Tenma was broken and devastated.

Tenma slowly looked around the room, giving everyone a sad, disappointed look too. "So, you guys already know about...that?"

"...yeah." Shindou answered in behalf of the team.

"And, that's what you wanted to help me with?" Tenma frowned.

"You think we're going to let him do that to you?"

"He won't do it. I'm too far away for him to do that." Tenma reasoned.

"But-"

"Enough! I don't need any of your help! I'm not as helpless and stupid as you all think!"

"Wha-That isn't why were doing this, Tenma! We're just worried about you!"

"So you decide to just involve yourselves in my business?! Just leave me alone!" Tenma finally snapped.

"What's wrong?" A voice interrupted. Everyone in the room turned towards Endou and Haruna, who both just walked in.

Endou slowly took in the atmosphere of the room. Everyone looked pretty scared and worried. And Tenma was taking deep breaths. The coach instantly knew what was going on.

"Tsurugi, did you tell them too?" Tenma asked the striker without averting his gaze from his coach.

"Tenma, this isn't what you think-" Endou tried to explain.

"Oh, it's not?" Tenma furrowed his eyebrows at Endou. He went back to his bag and made sure that he didn't forget anything. "So, Tsurugi didn't go behind my back and betray my trust by telling everyone that my father abused me!?"

"Tenma-"

"I know my own situation! I don't need any of your help!" Tenma grabbed his bag and stormed out of the room, leaving his stunned friends and coach.

Silence filled the room, with everyone still trying to take in what just happened.

"I think we screwed up." Kariya said matter-of-factly.

"You can say that again, Kariya." Shinsuke added sarcastically, slumping his shoulders.

...

...

"...I think we screwed up."

"Kariya!"

* * *

Tenma ran all the way back to his apartment. His excellent dribbling skills made it possible to dodge and avoid every single person on his way. Fortunately, all lights were green. So, he didn't need to stop at all.

When he made it in front of the apartment, he saw Sasuke resting in his doghouse. The brunet would usually pet him first, but right now he was too angry to do that. So, Tenma ignored his dog and quickly went inside, running straight to his room. If there was anyone there, he wasn't in the mood to notice and greet them too.

Tenma opened his room door and threw his bag angrily on the floor. He didn't care if it was ripped or anything of the sorts. He just needed something to let his anger out.

The first thing that came into mind was soccer. But, Tenma couldn't afford to do that. Soccer was what brought him happiness and what distracted him from his father's doings in the first place. He couldn't and wouldn't use it for his anger.

In the end, Tenma decided to not think about it anymore and just fell exhausted on the bed. He remained there for the next few minutes, not doing anything but gazing to the ceiling, deep in thought.

A bark suddenly brought him back to reality. Tenma averted his gaze to his dog before him. Sasuke was cooing worriedly at him. Tenma blinked, he must've been so deep in thought to not notice his door opening and Sasuke walking in. The dog jumped onto the bed as well and started licking his cheek.

Tenma couldn't help but chuckle at the show of affection. He let Sasuke lick him a few more times, before he put his hands on his face. "Thanks, Sasuke." Tenma thanked his dog. Sasuke barked, seeming relieved that Tenma was alright and happy.

Tenma's hands moved from his face to the top of his head, and began to pet Sasuke. The dog enjoyed that, and he adjusted his position so that he was sitting beside the boy. Tenma continued to pet him for a few more minutes, before his smile turned into a frown and he let out a sad sigh.

"I'm sorry I didn't greet you earlier, Sasuke. It's just..." Tenma trailed off. "I just had a really bad day." Sasuke whined sadly at that. Tenma noticed, so he gave the dog a smile. It wasn't a happy smile, but it was a smile nonetheless.

"I met with Father again yesterday." Tenma stated. Sasuke perked up and he growled at the mention of the man.

"It's fine, he didn't do anything to me." Tenma lied. Sasuke didn't seem to believe him, but he managed to calm down a notch. He was still growling, though.

"But, I also met with Kenta and Karin again!" Tenma said enthusiastically. Sasuke's ears perked up and he barked excitedly. "Sorry, I forgot to ask them to make you your favorite."

Sasuke went whined before setting his head back down on beside Tenma. His master proceeded to scratch his ear.

"Then…" Tenma sighed. "I hate Tsurugi."

Sasuke's ears perked again and he cooed sadly. Tenma could almost hear the unspoken question.

_Why?_

"He...he betrayed me." Tenma stated slowly, furrowing his eyebrows. "I told him about Father, because I thought he wouldn't tell anybody." The brunet sighed. "But, he did."

Sasuke growled angrily at that. But when he saw his master's sad teary eyes, he stopped growling and instead licked his cheek again. Tenma chuckled gratefully at how his dog was trying to cheer him up. He wiped a few tears from his face and he proceeded to hug his best friend.

"Thanks, Sasuke. I know you'll always be with me, no matter what." A happy bark from the dog confirmed what he said, and Tenma hugged him tighter.

Unbeknownst to them both, a young woman was standing in front of their door with her knuckle frozen in place. Her eyes went wide and she silently gasped at what she heard.

* * *

**A/N: "Who was that woman?"**

**Hey, it'll be no fun if I spoil it to you now.**

**"I'm not here for fun."**

**Maybe you're not, but the others are. And, it won't be fair to them too if I tell you who she is.**

**"I don't care. Just tell me."**

**Anyway, did you enjoy the chapter?**

**"Hey, you didn't answer my question-"**

**Tell me in your reviews your opinions on this chapter. And, I'll try to reply to all of them!**

**"Lyra-"**

**OH MY GOD! YOU CALLED ME BY NAME! YOU CALLED ME BY NAME!**

**"WHEN WILL YOU UPDATE, GEEZ!?"**

**Calm down. Well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.**

**"What? What does that have anything to do with-"**

**I'll try to update in less than a month. But, you never know. Life can be pretty unpredictable sometimes.**

**"More like, all the time."**

**I can almost see you roll your eyes. Creepy.**


	17. Reasons

**A/N : Hey, guys!**

**"IT'S BEEN FOREVER! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?"**

**On Earth.**

**"Very funny. But, seriously. It's been like-"**

**I don't even want to know. But, I owe you all an apology for delaying this story for so long. School's torture and I'm actually posting this when in the middle of exam week. I'm a rebel, ladies and gentlemen!**

**"And, she disclaims."**

**Do you forgive me?**

**"Depends on the chapter."**

**Okay, here's chapter 17! Enjoy!**

* * *

"Tenma?" Tsurugi knocked against the door with a weak rap. Despite knowing what Tenma's reaction would be, he still came, wanting to speak with Tenma again. However, when the door opened, he was met with a low snarl.

Beneath him was Sasuke, baring its teeth at him with a vicious snap. "Grr!"

Tsurugi backed away. Sasuke didn't move but he kept his eyes straight on him.

"Sasuke?" The striker said, dumbfounded. The dog only growled louder and he stepped forward in front of the door, completely blocking the entrance to the room.

Tsurugi stared at him and he began to understand Sasuke's intentions. He wasn't allowing the striker come into the room at all. Tenma must've told him already, and the dog was merely protecting his master.

"Can I speak to Tenma?" Tsurugi slowly asked. It felt weird for him to ask that, to a dog nonetheless. But, he had to do it.

Sasuke barked angrily, which Tsurugi assumed was a no. The navy-haired boy sighed, "So he told you what happened, then."

Sasuke continued to growl, not moving an inch.

"Let us help him, Sasuke." Tsurugi stated to the dog. All he got was another loud bark from him.

"Sasu-"

"Tsurugi-kun?" A female voice cut his sentence. The said boy blinked, before turning around to see her.

"Aki-san."

Aki gave him a small smile and walked towards him. "I didn't hear you come in."

Tsurugi frowned. "I'm sorry. I didn't knock when I came here."

Aki let out a giggle, shaking her head. "No, it's fine. Tenma did the same thing earlier." She stated, glancing at the barely open door and Sasuke growling in front of it.

"I see." Tsurugi said, doing the same. Both of them didn't say a word after that, merely looking at the dog and the door.

"...Tenma ran straight to his room when he came in." Aki said eventually. Tsurugi stayed silent, letting her talk.

"Even though I was in the living room, he didn't greet me at all. He just opened the manor door, ran to his room and closed the door without saying a single word." Aki explained.

"I was about to go to his room and ask him what's wrong, but Sasuke beat me to it." She said, smiling at the dog before her.

Sasuke almost stopped growling when he saw Aki. But since Tsurugi was still there, Sasuke continued. The striker looked at the dog with a frown.

"Sasuke wouldn't let you in?" Aki asked.

Tsurugi shook his head. "No. He just keeps growling."

Aki nodded quietly. She glanced at the dog and then at the door he was blocking.

"Tell me, Tsurugi-kun." Aki muttered quietly. The young woman turned to him with a worried expression. "What exactly happened in Okinawa?"

Tsurugi winced. Instantly, all the memories of what happened came back to his mind. It took everything in him to not walk away right then and there.

The striker bit his lip. He didn't want to tell her, but at the same time he needed to tell her. Aki's the one that took care of Tenma when he came here. She deserved to know. Aki probably didn't know the whole truth, either.

Tsurugi sighed. Like it or not, he had to explain.

"It started when we were going home from the match."

* * *

Aki had used at least five tissues when he was done. When Tsurugi started to tell her everything, Aki led them both to the living room to chat in private so that neither Tenma nor Sasuke could hear. And she was thankful she had done that, because if she hadn't then they would've heard her sobbing by the door.

Tsurugi stared at her sympathetically. This was why he didn't want to tell her. He knew that she would end up crying her heart out when he's done.

He told her basically the whole thing, not leaving a single detail. He told her of Tenma's weird behavior when they had reached the mansion. He told her of Karin's accidental slip-up. He told her of Kenta's stern warning to not bother Tenma again.

He told her of Tenma's talk with his..._father_. He told her of Tenma's reaction when he saw him eavesdropping. He told her of Tenma's outburst. He told her of everyone's reaction.

Everything. He told her everything.

He had seen enough people cry yesterday, Tenma alone was enough; he didn't need nor want to see another person cry again.

"But..."

Aki's voice snapped him from his thoughts. He looked up and saw that Aki had stopped her crying, now only mere hiccups.

"I heard Tenma say you betrayed him." Aki stated, wiping her tears. Tsurugi couldn't help but do a double take at that, even though a part of him expected it.

"What did he mean by that?" Aki questioned.

Tsurugi turned away from her, not bearing to look at her in the eye. "...I broke my promise with him. I had told him that I wouldn't tell anyone, but I went behind his back and told everyone."

The striker balled his fists and he gritted his teeth. "But, I didn't have a choice! I just couldn't watch my best friend suffer and do nothing!" He nearly shouted the last part to the woman before him.

Tsurugi quickly calmed down and sighed, "I...I had to do something. I can't stand seeing him hurt." He eventually confessed.

Aki watched the striker's near outburst in shock and surprise. Until now, she never saw Tsurugi like that. She didn't expect him to lose his cool. But after hearing his reasons, Aki gave the boy a smile. It was probably not a good smile, since her face was a mess because of the crying, but it was still a smile.

"It's not your fault." Her soft voice said.

Tsurugi turned back to her with his eyes wide. Out of all outcomes and comebacks he predicted, what she just said wasn't one of them.

Aki saw the disbelief in his eyes and furrowed her eyebrows. "You wanted to help a friend in need. What's wrong with that?"

"I betrayed him." Tsurugi replied. "I broke our promise-"

"For the better." Aki interrupted. She put her hand on Tsurugi's shoulder comfortingly. "Tenma will understand. He's just shocked that someone knows, since he's been putting it in the dark for so long."

"…He won't forgive me."

Aki shook her head. "No, I'm sure he will. Tenma's the type that already gave his forgiveness even before the person asked for it."

A small smile appeared on the striker's face and he almost chuckled. _That does sound like Tenma._

"Thanks to you, he won't be facing this alone anymore." Aki pulled her hand away, placing it on her lap. "You broke his trust, though, so you and the others have to think of a way to earn it back." Aki added, giving him a taste of reality.

Tsurugi stayed silent, but nodded anyway. "I will." The striker said with a small smile. "Thank you, Aki-san.

* * *

When Tsurugi walked back to Tenma's door, Sasuke was still standing there, guarding it. Apparently he stopped growling when the boy was out of his sight, but he went back to doing it again when Tsurugi came into his view. Tsurugi almost sighed, seeing that this dog was almost as stubborn as his owner.

Tsurugi stopped in front of the dog. "Sasuke, let me in."

Sasuke didn't move from his spot. He merely bared his teeth and barked.

Aki went to stand beside Tsurugi and crouched to Sasuke's level, giving the dog a smile. "Please, Sasuke. At least, let Tsurugi-kun talk to Tenma from here."

Sasuke still didn't budge.

Noticing that their efforts weren't enough, Tsurugi took a deep breath and said, "I won't hurt him again."

Both Aki and Sasuke looked at him in surprise. Seeing that it was too late to back down, Tsurugi continued. "If I do, you can hurt me as a punishment."

Sasuke's eyes perked up, and he stopped growling. The dog looked at him, as if he's searching for any signs of a lie. Even Aki was a bit shocked at the sudden statement.

"Please, Sasuke." Tsurugi said quietly, frowning while pushing his stubborn pride aside. "Let me talk to him."

That seemed to be enough for Sasuke, since he slowly walked away from the door. Tsurugi himself didn't expect the dog to finally let him do it, but he was grateful nonetheless.

Aki's eyes softened and she pet the dog. "Thank you, Sasuke." The dog leaned to her touch, wagging his tail.

"Thank you, Sasuke." Tsurugi nodded. Then, the striker turned back to the door and proceeded to knock on it. But, a low snarl stopped his knuckle from touching the wooden surface. Tsurugi glanced at Sasuke, slightly surprised.

The dog glanced between him and the door and did a quiet growl. Tsurugi understood what he was trying to say. Sasuke may have let him talk to Tenma, but he didn't trust him enough to go in the room.

_Makes sense,_ Tsurugi thought. _I would probably do the same if I were him._

"Okay." Tsurugi said, pulling his hand away from the door. Sasuke huffed, and leaned back to Aki's touch.

"Let's go, Sasuke. It's time for lunch." Aki said to the dog, earning a happy bark. Sasuke quickly made his way to the door, glancing at Tsurugi cautiously before walking out of the manor with Aki behind him.

Aki turned to Tsurugi and flashed him a reassuring smile. _"Good luck."_ She mouthed to him. Tsurugi gasped quietly, but he nodded and smiled back. Aki waved at him and followed Sasuke outside.

Turning back to the door in front of him, Tsurugi took a deep breath. This was the reason why he followed Tenma to his house. All of this happened because of him breaking his promise, and Tenma was obviously hurt by it. This was Tsurugi's chance to tell Tenma his reasons.

And, he was not going to mess it up.

"Tenma, I know you're in there." Tsurugi started. "Your dog didn't let me in, so I can only talk to you from here."

He got only silence as a response.

Tsurugi bit his lip and continued. "I know you're mad at me. No, you're furious maybe. You probably hate me and everyone else right now. But, it's okay. I understand."

"But, let me explain myself just this once. Why I broke our promise. Why I went behind your back. Why I told everyone your secret."

Again, only silence greeted him. But, Tsurugi ignored it.

"Tenma, you're important to me. You're precious to me. Not just me, but to everyone else. You're our precious friend. You're the one that made us realize that we love soccer. You're the one that lead us to winning the Holy Road championship. You're the one that cheers everyone up. You're the one that saves the day. You're the one that motivates us to be stronger. You're the glue that holds us all together."

"That's why we care about you. We don't ever want to see you sad, even more so cry. We don't ever want to see you hurt or injured. That's why everyone always freaks out when you got injured. Especially Shindou-senpai and Shinsuke. They practically went nuts every time." Tsurugi smiled at the last part.

"We don't want to see you suffer. We don't want to see you in pain. Even though you heal pretty quickly, we'd still be worried." Tsurugi admitted. After that, he stayed silent for a few minutes. What's going to matter would be what he says after this. Tsurugi's not the type to do a speech, but it doesn't hurt to try.

"…That's why I broke our promise. When I saw that man hurt you, I felt really angry. There was this sudden rage inside of me that almost made me burst into the room that very second. He hurt you; he hurt my best friend. I couldn't stand that." Tsurugi said, balling his fist.

"When I saw you cry, I couldn't stand that either. You're not supposed to cry. You're supposed to be happy. You look better when you're smiling. That, I'm sure everyone in the team will agree."

"But when you told me to not tell the others, I couldn't agree to that. You basically told me to hide your suffering and sadness from everyone else…I just couldn't agree to that. I think I'll never agree to anything like that." Tsurugi said, shaking his head to no one in particular.

"I had to tell them. Like I said, we don't want to see you sad or hurt. We'll do whatever it takes to make you happy. I don't care what we do, but if it'll make you happy, then I'll gladly do it. We'll protect you. We'll beat whoever dares to even lay a finger on you. You won't be hurt again." Tsurugi said with the most determination and confidence he ever had for a while.

"You've been suffering alone for way too long. You hid your pain from your friends and acted cheerful all the time. Sometimes, you even faked your smile." Tsurugi looked down, frowning.

"I'm sorry I didn't realize it sooner. I'm sorry I didn't notice it sooner. I'm sorry I didn't help you sooner. We're all sorry, for not realizing that our most precious friend was suffering from the inside."

"I'm sorry that we broke your trust. I'm sorry that I broke our promise. It's okay if you don't forgive us. I'm sure everyone will understand. But, there's one thing that I want you to know, Tenma." Tsurugi looked up from the floor and took a deep breath.

"You're not alone anymore. You have a lot of friends that are beside you, that are willing to help you. All you need to do is ask, and they'll be there…I'll be there. You've helped and saved us countless of times. This time, we'll help and save you."

Silence filled his ears. Tsurugi stared at the door with a worried frown. Did Tenma hear what he said? Did Tenma understand what he meant? Or did he ignore every word Tsurugi said?

Realizing that he won't get a response, Tsurugi sighed and turned to the door. But, he had one last thing to say before he goes home.

"We're going to try our best to earn your trust back. And, we'll always be there for you. That's a promise that I'll never break as long as I live." Tsurugi ended his speech. Then, he made his way to the manor door.

"It won't be easy."

Tsurugi gasped and turned around. Standing there in front of the door was Tenma, still wearing the clothes he wore when he got here. His hair was messy, probably because he stuffed his head on the pillow for too long. There were tear streaks on his face, meaning that he had been crying again. Tsurugi mentally frowned when he saw that. The brunet looked tired and sleepy, but otherwise he seemed fine.

"It'll be hard and challenging." Tenma said, his voice hinting that he was indeed tired. Tsurugi didn't know if he was referring to them regaining his trust or them being forgiven or maybe even them releasing Tenma from his father's wrath. He didn't know, but he still nodded anyway.

"Everything will work out somehow." Tsurugi smiled and answered with Tenma's signature motto. Tenma blinked at the familiar saying. His face was blank for a few minutes, before he finally flashed a small smile.

"Yeah."

* * *

**"I forgive you."**

**YASS! WHO-HOO! I'M FORGIVEN!**

**"By one person! I don't know about everybody else..."**

**Well, it's up to them. Anyway, thank you for your patience! Let me know what you think in the reviews, and also if it's worth the long wait!**

**"Give them another gift or something."**

**Oh yeah! Here, have a cookie! (::) (::) (::)**


	18. We're Here

**A/N: YES! I finally did an update in less than a week!**

**"Your exams are done?"**

**Yep! Just yesterday, actually!**

**"And your scores?"**

**Um, so far so good. Anyway, I didn't want to make you wait any longer since you waited for forever for the last chapter.**

**"Technically, it was a few months."**

**Yeah, thanks Calendar. Anyway, here is the 18th chapter!**

**"And, she disclaims."**

**You're getting used to it, aren't you?**

**"Your welcome."**

* * *

The two boys stared at each other, both not saying a word. It was kind of awkward, to say the least. One person had witnessed his friend's secret and broke his promise of not telling anyone about it. The other was hurt at how his friend betrayed his trust and went behind his back without telling him. And now, both of them are facing each other to try and solve the problem at hand.

Tenma was the one who broke the almost uncomfortable silence. "I won't forgive you that easily, either." He muttered, looking away.

Tsurugi's eyes softened and he shook his head, seemingly not bothered. "It's fine. Take your time." The striker sent him a genuine, grateful smile.

"And…" Tenma bit his lip. "I'm sorry for my behavior at the clubroom."

Tsurugi's eyes widened, taken aback by the sudden, and needless, apology. "Why are you sorry?"

"I overreacted." Tenma stated matter-of-factly.

"Hardly, your reaction was understandable. I'm sure anyone else would've done the same." Tsurugi reasoned.

"How about the others?" Tenma questioned, glancing at him. "How did they…" The brunet trailed off.

Tsurugi already knew what he was trying to say. "Admittedly, they were a little surprised. But, they understood pretty quickly as well."

Tenma didn't answer him. He merely stared at the floor.

"…Did you mean everything you said?" The brunet asked after a few silent seconds.

"Yes." Tsurugi answered him instantly. It saddened him that Tenma thought he was lying. Then again, he did lie and broke their promise. Tenma widened his eyes at how fast and how determined the striker replied.

"And, I'm sorry if our approach to your situation was a bit too…straightforward." Tsurugi added with an apologetic expression. Tenma finally looked up to his friend, surprised at how sincere his tone was. The brunet realized that Tsurugi really did mean everything he said, and he wasn't lying to him again.

Touched by how much his friend actually cared, Tenma finally gave the striker a genuine smile. "It's fine. You guys are kind of idiotic in the first place."

Tsurugi knew that it was far from fine, but he still felt a ton of weight lifted off his shoulders. At first he almost wanted to hug or at least say thanks to the brunet.

But then, he realized that Tenma just told a joke.

Tsurugi was surprised, to say the least, at how fast Tenma could act like himself again. But he hid his shock; instead he raised his eyebrows and couldn't help but smile himself. "Really? I'm an idiot, then?"

Tenma gave a small shrug. "Yeah. We're all idiots, for taking our first steps a little too quickly." Tenma snickered, chuckling slightly.

Tsurugi chuckled. "I guess you're right."

Tenma half-grinned at him. But then, his smile faltered a little and his eyes showed a small hint of sadness – which Tsurugi absolutely despised.

"I-I'll tell you everything…later." Tenma stuttered, smiling nervously. He turned away from the striker and murmured, "I'm still mad at you, so…"

"Alright, I understand." Tsurugi nodded. Tenma haven't completely forgiven them yet, and he didn't trust them with any of his secrets. Tsurugi knew that it would take time for Tenma to open up to them, but he was prepared to wait as long as he needed.

Tenma turned back to him and smiled. Then, he took a few steps forward until he was standing in front of the navy-haired boy. Tsurugi almost backed away in confusion when he saw Tenma coming near him. Tenma stayed silent, before he quickly flicked Tsurugi's forehead with his finger.

"What the-" Tsurugi almost shouted in surprise at the sudden action. His right hand went to rub his forehead, which stung from the hand flick. Tenma chuckled and simply said, "That's your punishment for breaking our promise."

Tsurugi stared at the brunet with a surprised look. But, his eyes softened and he accepted his 'punishment'. "I thought you would give a harder one."

"Oh, I will." Tenma said with a mysterious glint in his eyes. "I don't have what I need yet, though. So, that flick would have to do for now."

Tsurugi regretted what he said once he heard that. "I don't even want to know."

"Good, it won't be fun if you do." Tenma smiled. The captain quickly glanced at the manor door for a split second, before he turned back to the striker. "Did you come alone?"

Tsurugi blinked at the random question. "Yeah, I did."

"Huh." Was Tenma's answer. Tsurugi furrowed his eyebrows, curious at what he was up to. "Why do you ask?"

"Nothing." Tenma gave him a wink and quickly walked over to the door, not making a single sound. The brunet glanced at Tsurugi one last time before he pulled the door fully open.

To Tsurugi's surprise, a bunch of boys suddenly fell onto the floor before him. All of them groaned, as they landed on top of each other hard. The striker then realised that they were actually his friends from the team.

"Ouch…" Shinsuke scratched his head.

"Kariya, you're heavy." Kirino groaned, earning a nervous chuckle from the first year.

"W-What happened?" Shindou opened his left eye, scanning his surroundings.

Tenma chuckled at the heap of bodies. Apparently, they were still too surprised and shocked to notice the brunet standing in front of them. Tenma leaned on the door and looked at Tsurugi, his finger pointing at their friends. "Define _alone_, Tsurugi."

When the team heard that one voice, everyone came back to reality and turned their heads around to the source. "Tenma!" They half-shouted.

The said boy gave them a small smile. Then, he slowly crouched down to their level and asked, "What are you guys doing here?"

"U-Um…" Shinsuke stuttered, smiling sheepishly. "We just wanted to..."

"Know more about my past?" Tenma guessed, tilting his head to the side innocently.

"No!" All of them shouted simultaneously at their captain. Tsurugi winced at the sudden rise of volume. But, Tenma didn't seem to be fazed.

"Then, why are you here?" Tenma asked once more.

Everyone glanced at each other, not knowing what to say first or who will say it. Meanwhile, Tenma finally took in their position and had to stifle a laugh. "You might want to get up first. I can't take you seriously when you're like that."

The team was a bit taken aback at how…normal Tenma looked and sounded. Just minutes ago, he was glaring at them with the fiercest death glare they had ever seen and stormed out of the room. And now, if they didn't know better, they would think that nothing actually happened and Tenma was back to being his cheery old self.

But of course, that was not the case.

Putting that matter aside for a minute, everybody finally noticed their uncomfortable position, sending awkward glances everywhere. Tsurugi himself sweat-drop at the sight of them.

"…I guess you're right." Shindou slowly pulled himself up, forcing the others to follow suit. It took a while, since they were pretty much a tangled mess, but everyone eventually got up from the floor. Tsurugi had walked over to them when they were still getting up, so now he was standing beside his teammates.

Tenma didn't say another word. He just kept silent and watched his teammates with an almost blank expression. The others squirmed under his gaze, even though Tenma didn't show that much expression.

"So," Tenma finally said. He slowly closed the manor door, waving at a few neighbours that saw him, and turned back to his teammates with his arms crossed. "What brings you here?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Nobody said anything. Tsurugi didn't need to answer, since he already told the brunet. Seeing as no one had the courage to say anything, Shindou decided to step up and do it. "We felt bad for leaving things the way they were." He replied. "We want to help you, but I guess we got off to a bad start."

Tenma scoffed slightly. "To say the least."

Shindou frowned but he didn't object. "So, we wanted to apologise to you. Tsurugi got a head start ahead of us, though. Ran to catch up to you minutes after you walked out." The senior glanced at the navy-haired boy, who merely furrowed his eyebrows and looked away. Tenma followed his gaze and also looked at Tsurugi, his mouth forming an amused smirk as if he's saying _"So that's what happened."_

"I'm assuming that he already told you most of it." Shindou turned back to the team captain. "He probably already explained his own reasons too. But, we'd like to explain ourselves to you as well."

"Explain why you went behind my back too?" Tenma raised an eyebrow, looking a bit bemused. Shindou slightly winced at his tone, but nodded anyway.

"Yeah, that too."

"No need." Tenma waved it off dismissively. Everyone widened their eyes at his statement. Shindou gasped, taken aback. "Why?"

Tenma shrugged. "I figured out what you'd say anyway. And, Tsurugi here took his sweet little time to explain it to me also." Tenma smirked sarcastically, gesturing to the striker before him. Tsurugi, on the other hand, was a bit surprised yet also annoyed at how Tenma described him.

"Besides, you were here when he explained it to me." Tenma stated matter-of-factly, averting his gaze to the others. Once again, the team was surprised, especially Tsurugi. He didn't even notice that someone eavesdropped on him and Tenma. How did Tenma know?

"H-How did you…" Kariya stuttered, mirroring everyone's thoughts exactly.

"I told you, I have sharp hearing." A pause. "Well actually no, I told that to Tsurugi and Shindou-san but I don't know if any of you heard it."

The team just stared at him, dumbfounded. Tenma noticed and gave them a slight smile. "So, you obviously heard our whole conversation. What else is there to say?"

"We're sorry." Shinsuke said out of the blue.

Tenma blinked while the others turned at him with a puzzled look. None of them expected him to say something, especially that. But, Shinsuke ignored them and merely continued. "It was your own situation and we invaded your privacy without permission. That's why we want to say sorry."

"_Sorry_ isn't going to be enough." Tenma said, half-glaring at the small defender. Shinsuke bit his lip at the glare but he still managed to give a slight nod. "…I know."

"But, we're going to do our best." Hikaru added. Tenma turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "Do your best? To do what?"

"Earn your forgiveness and trust." Hikaru replied with determination. Tenma's eyebrows rose in surprise. It wasn't the actual sentence that surprised the brunet, since Tsurugi just told him the same thing minutes ago. No, it was the amount of determination in Hikaru's voice that surprised him. Tenma hadn't seen him this determined since…a long time.

"He's right." Kariya stepped in, which Tenma didn't expect. "We kind of broke your trust, too. So, we're going to do our best to show you that we won't betray you again." Tenma furrowed his eyebrows, and was about to say something when Kirino beat him to it.

"You won't forgive us that easily, we know. You said it yourself." Kirino frowned. "You also won't trust us for a while."

"But, that's okay." Sangoku smiled. "Because it was our fault for going behind your back in the first place."

Tenma stared at them with a sympathetic face. He already heard all of this from Tsurugi, he didn't need to hear it again. "Guys…"

"But please, Tenma." Kurama furrowed his eyebrows. "Let us help you."

Tenma almost did a double take. Kurama never begged, especially to him. He knew that his situation was serious, but was it so serious that Kurama had to beg?

"Please, Tenma-kun." Hikaru said with teary eyes. "We don't want to see you hurt."

"It's okay if you don't forgive us." Shindou finally said. "But, please let us help you. We want to repay you for everything you've done."

"Please!" Shinsuke begged, the others doing the same. Tsurugi looked at him with sadness and desperation, as if he was saying, _"Give us one more chance."_

Tenma stared at them, not saying a word. His expression was unreadable; no one could guess what he was thinking. Everyone looked at him expectantly, hoping that Tenma would answer. But he merely stared at them with a straight face. Some were starting to think that he didn't believe any of them.

But deep inside, Tenma wanted to cry. He really did. Sheer willpower was the only thing holding the tears from coming out. What his friends said. What his friends meant. What his friends intended. Tenma wasn't an idiot; he could tell that they meant everything. None of them lied this time.

And it made him want to cry.

"…How?" He muttered. Everyone's heads perked up and they widened their eyes. Tenma's body was slightly trembling, the walls he put up his whole life was starting to crumble. Tenma was staring at them with sad, desperate eyes. His face looked like he believed everything they said, but there was still a small hint of doubt. He seemed like he couldn't put on his straight face anymore.

For the first time, the team could finally see the _real_ Tenma. The one that was hidden in the dark for so long.

"How are you going to help me?" Tenma asked one more time. Everyone's hearts broke when they heard how broken he sounded.

No one said anything for a few minutes. It's not that they didn't have an answer, because they had tons. They already discussed it back at Okinawa. But when Tenma questioned them himself, it felt like they had nothing to say. As if all of those plans were all thrown out the window.

Tenma frowned when none of them answered. He knew it. They didn't know how. Tenma slightly slumped his shoulders in disappointment. He was about to tell them to just forget it and kindly leave when suddenly there were arms wrapped around him.

Tenma was snapped out of his thoughts and he looked up. The brunet was surprised, to say the least, when he saw all of his friends wrapping him in a hug. Even Tsurugi and Kurama joined in.

"That's simple." Shindou replied. The senior let go of Tenma and slightly lowered himself to Tenma's height and looked at him in the eye.

"We'll always be by your side."

Tenma gasped and widened his eyes. That final sentence finally broke through his walls and the tears he had held broke out, streaming on his cheeks.

"It's okay, Tenma." Shinsuke said, looking at his sad friend. "We're here."

That made Tenma cry harder. He couldn't hold it back anymore.

His sadness.

His pain.

His loneliness.

His guilt. He just couldn't hold it back anymore.

Tenma let out a broken sob and he instantly felt his friends hugging him tighter, whispering soothingly to his ear. His instincts took over and he quickly hugged Shindou and cried on his shirt. He didn't even notice that his friends were crying too.

A few feet away from them, Aki and the managers silently cried, watching the emotional scene unfold. Sasuke was wagging his tail, happy that his master was finally opening up a bit. Haruna wiped a few tears from her cheeks while Endou nodded with a proud smile.

Tenma had a bunch of great friends by his side.

He would be all right.

* * *

**A/N: "That was long."**

**I know! It's one of my longest chapters yet! Tell me your opinion in the Review section, guys! I want to know!**

**"When's the next chapter?"**

**Patience, my friend! Good things come to those who wait!**

**"The last time I heard that was from a Disney villain."**

**Well then, that villain stole my line! I can't promise you that the next chapter will be up in a week. But, I'll try my best to publish it as soon as possible!**

**"Don't be like Tsurugi, who broke his promise literally minutes later."**

**Hey, his reasons were good! Oh, and I also want to thank those who stayed and waited for this chapter. I hope I didn't disappoint you all! By the way, have a cookie! (::) (::) (::) (::)**

**"They can't eat those."**

**Shush! It's the thought that counts!**


	19. Reassurance

**A/N: Hey, I'm back!**

**"..."**

***sighs* You don't have to forgive me. I know that this chapter is way past its promised date.**

**"..."**

**And, I'm sorry if this chapter is a bit short. In my defence, I just finished a week full of tests and finals is literally next week. So, I could only manage to write this much in the short free time I have.**

**"..."**

**I'm sorry.**

***sighs* "...it's fine, I guess. You were pretty busy. Hopefully, this chapter's worth the wait."**

**I hope so too.**

**"What is it about?"**

**No spoilers! You'll have to read it to find out!**

**"Ugh, fine."**

**Hehehe!**

**"She disclaims, by the way."**

**Oh, you're getting better at that!**

**"Shut up."**

* * *

After the emotional hug, Tenma pulled away and thanked yet apologized for his behavior. Of course, the others said that both were pointless and needless, but he did it anyway.

Endou and the rest also showed themselves from where they were watching the whole encounter. Needless to say, Tenma and the team were surprised. Tenma and Tsurugi looked away embarrassingly while the others just blushed.

The brunet afterwards, like he promised, flicked everyone in the forehead. He said it was their punishment for acting too straightforward. Even Endou was flicked. But, nobody complained. Sure, there were some dramatic squeals of pain from a certain someone (_"OOOUUUCH! IT HUUUURRRTTTTSSS!" "Shut up, Kariya!"_), but other than that they accepted the punishment.

Tenma also told them that he would explain the situation when he's ready. The captain was still mad at them and he didn't trust them either, so it was to be expected. Since it was getting a bit late, the brunet finally advised them to go home. But, they were hesitant to do so.

"Your families are worried, you better show them that you're okay." Tenma reasoned.

"Still…" Shinsuke frowned.

Tenma stayed silent before he hesitantly added, "…I also want some time alone, if you don't mind."

Apparently, those words were enough to convince everyone to go home. They forgot that this must've been a shock to Tenma, since this was the first time people, other than the staff at the mansion, knew about his situation.

"Alright." Tsurugi nodded. "We'll be going now." He said in behalf of everybody.

Tenma sent him a grateful smile. "Be careful on the way home." Tsurugi stared at him and smiled in return. The striker turned around and made his way to the manor door, hearing everybody saying their goodbyes and 'see-you-laters' to Tenma.

To be honest, he wanted to stay here a bit longer. Tenma had been alone for a long time and he needed comfort. No one was waiting for him back home, anyway. His parents were always so busy that they rarely come home. And his brother was, of course, at the hospital for, well you know why.

But since Tenma wanted to be by himself right now, he didn't have the heart to object.

"Oh yeah." Shinsuke halted and turned around. "Will you come to school tomorrow, Tenma?" He couldn't help but ask.

Tenma pursed his lips in thought and shrugged. "Probably, yeah. I'm kind of behind at some subjects. Aki-nee wouldn't like it if my grades dropped again."

"Tell me about it." Kariya snorted, walking ahead of Shinsuke. "My parents won't stop telling me to get good grades for once."

"Well, that's because your grades are a bit low, Kariya. You need to make it higher." Kirino stated beside him.

"Not true! My sports grades are awesome!" Kariya said annoyingly at his senior.

"Of course it would! You wouldn't be in the soccer club if it weren't!" Kirino told him back.

Shindou sighed before he put his hands on their shoulders, making the duo turn their heads to him. "Stop it, you two. You can argue on the way." Shindou said sternly, pushing them gently to the door.

Kariya frowned for a second before he slowly let out a defeated sigh and shrugged, continuing his walk out of the manor. "Alright, Shindou-senpai. I was planning to do that, anyway."

"No, you weren't." Kirino sweat-dropped, seeing through the lie. Kariya turned to the defender and crossed his arms smugly. "Yes, I was."

"No, you weren't." Kirino repeated.

"Yes, I was." Kariya told him again.

"No, you weren't!"

"Yes, I was!"

Shindou looked at the pair and put his hand on his hip, chuckling. When he turned his head to look for the his other teammates, he realized that he was the only one left. Everyone else had already went out to their separate houses, he remembered that he saw some of them still stealing glances to the manor - as if they didn't want to leave.

Shindou felt the same.

The senior let out a breath and turned around to face his young captain. Tenma was still standing at the same spot Shindou last saw him and the brunet gave a small smile when he saw him. Shindou couldn't help but do the same.

Both of them stood before each other, not muttering a single word. Shindou took advantage of the silence to take in his friend's appearance. To the naked eye, Tenma probably looked the same. His smile was the same. HIs posture was the same. And, his personality was the same. To the naked eye, Tenma didn't seem to have changed at all.

But, Shindou knew better than them.

He knew that Tenma wasn't the same.

The small faded tear streaks on the brunet's cheeks and the dark bags under his eyes were more than enough to prove his point. But, that's not all. Tenma's posture was the slightest bit stiff. His smile wasn't as cheerful, and it didn't match his eyes. Shindou mentally winced when he saw Tenma's eyes.

They say that eyes are the windows to the soul. Normally, Shindou would scoff and not believe it. But right now, Shindou got to experience first-hand that it was very, very true.

Tenma's eyes showed him a lot of emotions, emotions that Shindou thought he'd never see in Tenma.

_Exhaustion, doubt, struggle, anger, fear, loneliness,** help.**_

It showed him too much. The senior had to fight the sudden but very tempting urge to embrace the younger one in a hug and tell him that it'll be okay and he's not alone.

This was the real Tenma, the one that had been hiding for years. The one who was desperately seeking for help and comfort. The one who had fooled them into thinking that he was just a happy-go-lucky naive kid who love to play soccer.

The one that Shindou had failed to see.

"It's alright, Shindou-san." Tenma said suddenly, as if he knew of the senior's inner ordeal.

Shindou stared at the younger boy and bowed his head. "...it's not." he whispered. "Absolutely not."

Tenma's eyes softened. "You're right, it's not."

"But, it will be." Shindou faced his friend, a fierce determination seen in his eyes. "I promise, Tenma. I promise that we'll help you." You won't be hurt again.

Tenma's smile faltered and he searched the senior of any indications that what he said was a lie. After finding none, Tenma relaxed and gave him a smile and a nod.

"Like I said, it's not going to be easy." Tenma reminded him.

"We'll think of something." Shindou paused for a moment before he smirked and continued. "Everything will work out somehow."

Tenma couldn't help but let out a small chuckle at the familiar saying. "Why is everyone's stealing my catchphrase today?"

"Well, I have to admit, it's slightly...catchy." Shindou shrugged.

"Of course it is, it's a _catchphrase_!" Tenma laughed at the fact, with Shindou doing the same. The laughter brought some of the tension down, making the atmosphere lighter and more comfortable.

"I'm serious, though." Shindou said, still chuckling. "You've helped us many times in the past, this time we're going to help you."

Tenma finally calmed down and looked at his senior with a hopeful smile. "Alright, I'm counting on you."

"Leave it to us." Shindou said confidently. The ex-captain turned away from Tenma and made his way out of the manor. "You don't have to come to school tomorrow, if you want."

"I have to!" Tenma exclaimed, pouting like a kid. "My teachers would give me tons of homework if I don't! And, I don't like to do homework for your information."

Shindou let out a chuckle. "I see. How unfortunate." Shindou grabbed his bag and slowly walked outside the door. The senior made his way to the manor gate but he halted halfway and glanced behind him.

"Well then, see you tomorrow Tenma." Shindou smiled fondly.

Tenma, who had stepped forward to close the door, looked at him and sent a small grin. "See you tomorrow, Shindou-san."

Shindou felt a burst of relief when he no longer saw the dark emotions in Tenma's eyes. Feeling a lot more than satisfied, Shindou gave him a nod, turned around and finally made his way back to his mansion.

Seeing that his friend was finally returning home, Tenma closed the manor door and slowly walked back to his room. He turned on the lights and quickly jumped on the bed, feeling better than he's ever been before.

"Woof!"

Tenma heard a bark and turned around to see Sasuke there beside the bed. The brunet beamed when he saw his longtime friend. "Sasuke!"

Said dog barked happily and wagged his tail before he climbed onto the bed and settled beside his master. Tenma moved aside and gently pet Sasuke's head, making the dog wag his tail even more.

"Everyone came to say sorry earlier." Tenma said eventually. "It was unexpected, but I got to say, it felt nice."

Sasuke barked again and licked Tenma's cheek, making the boy laugh. "Oh yeah, you were there, weren't you? You saw the whole thing."

The dog barked and stopped licking Tenma's cheek. Tenma wiped it with his sleeve and looked up to the ceiling, placing his hands under his head.

"Do you forgive them?" Tenma asked.

All he got was a growl from the dog.

Tenma chuckled, not surprised at all. "I'll take that as a no, then." Sasuke barked and settled back on the bed, closing his eyes.

"But, do you trust them yet?" Tenma asked again.

Sasuke merely huffed. _No._

"Yeah, me too." Tenma agreed, not looking away from the ceiling. The brunet's gaze softened and he added, "...But, I think I'll trust them sooner or later."

Sasuke opened one eye and barked questioningly. Tenma knew what the dog was trying to say.

_Aren't they going to betray you again?_

"To be honest, I don't know." Tenma shrugged. He lifted his hand and started to pet Sasuke again. The dog relaxed under the touch and closed his eye again.

Tenma smiled at him and stated, "Let's find out tomorrow, shall we?"

Sasuke barked, fully agreeing with his master.

* * *

**A/N: Let me know what you think in your review, please! I love reading them!**

**"It's short."**

**Well, I'm sorry! I did this in over an hour or so, cut me some slack!**

**"Slack? What is that?"**

**Ugh, never mind. Anyway, thank you so much to all of you who read this and put it in your favourite list! And, thank you for sticking with me all the time! Arigatou! **

**"Huh, japanese."**

**Urusai, baka!**

**"Nani?!"**

**Oh, you can speak Japanese too? You never told me!**

**"Oi! What did you say-"**

**I also want to say sorry for making you guys wait for a very long period of time! But after this, I'm going to study hard for my finals. So, I won't be writing for at least a week.**

**"You haven't been writing for a month."**

**Go easy on me, will you? But seriously though, thank you!**

**"Humph."**

**Don't be so stoic, my friend! Here, have a cookie! (::) (::)**


	20. Not Going To Change

**A/N : Sorry, I'm late.**

**"That's an understatement."**

**Alright, sorry that i'm _later._**

**"It's still an understatement, idiot."**

**Ouch, that hurt. Anyway, I _finally_ finished my exams. And fortunately, I did good in most of them! Like, most of them are A or A+! **

**"Good for you."**

**Thanks! And, since my exams are finished for now, I have a school break until the week after next week!**

**"That just sounds weird."**

**Really? Ah, whatever. _Sooooo_, in that spare time, I managed to finish this chapter for y'all! I had good motivation, so it took me less than three days to finish this one.**

**"What's you motivation?"**

**If I don't do this, they're going to kill me.**

**"Wow, nice. And true."**

**That doesn't help me one bit, you know.**

**"Your welcome. Apologise then."**

**Oh yeah. For everyone who waited so long for this chapter, I'm sorry for making you wait but thank you for your patience! I hope this chapter meets your expectations! If not, then I'm sorry too. **

**"Took you long enough."**

**Should I apologise to you too, Mr.?**

**"Mr.?"  
**

**Oh, you're not a Mr.?**

**"It wouldn't be fun if I just tell you that, right?"**

**Oh. My. God.**

**"What?"**

**You just...teased me.**

**"...so?"**

**YOU JUST FREAKING TEASED ME! I THOUGHT YOU HAD NO PERSONALITY WHATSOEVER!**

**"WHA-HEY! YOU THINK I'M EMOTIONLESS?"**

**YES!**

**"DON'T SAY IT SO BLUNTLY, YOU IDIOT!"  
**

**FINALLY! A HINT TO YOUR OWN EXISTENCE! YOU LIKE TO TEASE!**

**"Hey, that hurt."**

**YOU CAN FEEL PAIN? WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE HAVING TWO HINTS IN ONE DAY?**

**"Ugh. Just say the disclaimer. This note is long enough."**

**THIS IS A NOTE!?  
**

**"SHE DISCLAIMS! IGNORE THIS CHAT AND ERASE THIS FROM YOUR MEMORY! JUST READ THE FREAKING CHAPTER!"**

**Aw, you do care.**

* * *

"Are you sure you want to go, Tenma?" Aki asked the teen. "I could just tell your teacher that you're tired today."

"Nope. I'm going." Tenma said stubbornly. "Even though I hate school, I hate piles of homework even more."

Aki stifled a giggle. "Is that so?"

The brunet nodded, taking a sip of his soup. "Yeah. Literally, the only thing I like about school is the after-school activities and the chance to see my friends. That's basically the only reason I signed up for Raimon."

"Well, I can't argue with that." Aki stated, slowly drinking her tea. "Is there soccer practice today?"

"No. Coach Endou said that we could have a day off for today. We'll continue practice tomorrow." Tenma replied.

Aki's eyes softened. "I see." The young woman wasn't surprised at the sudden statement. In fact, she'd be surprised if there wasn't a day off. Everyone must've been tired (both physically and mentally) from what happened these past few days; it's normal and expected for Endou to announce that they'd have a day off.

"Well then, I'll be going, Aki-nee!" Tenma's voice snapped the woman from her thoughts. She turned to the teen, who had finished his breakfast and was now heading towards the door.

"Be careful on the way, Tenma!" Aki reminded him.

"I will!" Tenma said as he quickly put on his shoes and ran outside. "See you later, Aki-nee!"

Aki waved at the door, even though she knew that Tenma couldn't see her. Now alone in the dining room, the young woman couldn't help but reflect on these past few day's events.

_"...I broke my promise with him. I had told him that I wouldn't tell anyone, but I went behind his back and told everyone. But, I didn't have a choice! I just couldn't watch my best friend suffer and do nothing!"_

_"Please, Tenma-kun. We don't want to see you hurt."_

_"It's okay if you don't forgive us. But, please let us help you. We want to repay you for everything you've done."_

_"How are you going to help me?"_

_"That's simple. We'll always be by your side."_

Aki unconsciously gripped her glass of tea. Despite the fact that Tenma was a very forgiving person, she knew that it'd take time for even him to bounce back.

She didn't blame anyone for what they had done. Tsurugi and the others heard of Tenma's situation and decided to take action about it. Tenma heard of what they did and took it the wrong way, making him not trust them anymore.

Aki was worried, to say the least. She knew and believed that in the end, Tenma would trust his friends again. But until then, what were they going to do?

"Oh, Tenma…" Aki sighed, resting her cheek on her palm. She was about to head off to the kitchen to was the dishes when she heard footsteps rushing back from the door. Aki turned around just in time to see Tenma burst in and turn his head around frantically.

"What's wrong, Tenma?" Aki asked him.

Tenma finally noticed he wasn't alone and he turned to her with a panicked look. "Aki-nee! I almost forgot my bag!"

Aki blinked at him before she let out a small giggle. "Of course you did."

* * *

"Good morning, Aoi." Shinsuke greeted the young girl as he entered the classroom and made his way to his table.

Aoi looked up from her phone and waved at the small brunet. "Good morning, Shinsuke."

"Is Tenma here yet?" Shinsuke asked, putting down his bag.

The girl shook her head, glancing at the empty table beside her. "No, not yet."

Shinsuke frowned. "He said that he'd come today."

"And, he will come." Kariya appeared behind him, startling the small defender.

"Kariya! You scared me!" Shinsuke cried out.

The teal-haired boy flashed him a small grin. "Sorry."

Aoi giggled at the two boys and slipped her phone into her pocket. After managing to calm down a bit, Shinsuke took in what Kariya just said.

"How are you so sure, Kariya?" Shinsuke questioned.

"Don't know. Just have a feeling that he will." Kariya shrugged and put his hands behind his head. "You know that Tenma's late sometimes."

A small smile appeared in both Shinsuke and Aoi's faces at the fact. "Well, I can't deny that." Shinsuke chuckled.

"But, what should we do when he comes?" Kariya asked.

"What do you mean, Kariya?" Aoi tilted her head in confusion.

"You know, when Tenma comes here. What should we do? Act normal or something?" Kariya repeated.

Aoi and Shinsuke frowned, recalling yesterday's events. Fortunately, they had made the problem easier by showing Tenma that they were sorry. But, they knew that wasn't enough to make the brunet trust them yet.

Trust is fragile, and it's certainly not an overnight thing. The only way you can earn someone's trust is by being there with them every step of the way and show them that you care.

Because of what they did, Tenma didn't trust them anymore. It may take weeks or even months to earn his full trust back, but in this case they don't have that much time.

It's not that they're impatient (they stayed up the whole night just to wait for Tsurugi to come back and give them updates on Tenma, they're anything but impatient), but this time they have a very strict deadline.

Besides, the sooner they can help Tenma, the better.

If not for Tenma's sake, then for their own sanity.

Somehow, they need to make Tenma trust them in a matter of days, even a little bit of trust is fine. Anything to make him feel comfortable spending time with them again.

The question is, how?

"Shindou-senpai said that we'd stay by his side." Shinsuke stated. "But, you know how well that went back in Okinawa."

"That's because we were doing it wrong." Aoi scowled, crossing her arms. "Like what Tenma said, we took action too fast. Back then, every single one of us tried to talk to Tenma at the same time." Aoi's scowl deepened in the slightest, her eyes showing mild concern. "I could tell that made Tenma feel uncomfortable."

"Well, we know what we did wrong. We were too obvious and too blunt." Kariya stated matter-of-factly. The teal-haired boy slipped his hands from his pockets and did a thinking pose. "That means we need to take it slow, and show him that we care in a more...subtle way."

Kariya looked up and saw both of his friends blinking at him like he just grew another head. "What?" Kariya said, a bit agitated.

"Kariya, you just said something…smart." Aoi mumbled, still taking in what the defender just said.

Said boy raised an eyebrow, not getting what she meant. "Yeah, so?"

"The world must be ending." Shinsuke thought out loud. "Kariya said something smart. What's next? Tsurugi will ace in his Maths?"

_"Hey."_ What devil's luck Shinsuke had, as Tsurugi was standing right behind him the second he said that. Shinsuke froze and he slowly turned around to see Tsurugi glaring at him, demanding for an explanation.

"T-Tsurugi..." Shinsuke stuttered under Tsurugi's scary glare. "Um, good morning?"

"What do you mean by that, Shinsuke?" Tsurugi asked, slightly pissed off.

"N-Nothing! I was joking, Tsurugi! You're great at Maths! Ahaha…" Shinsuke laughed nervously. Aoi and Kariya sweat-dropped at him.

Tsurugi's eye twitched, but he sighed and put that matter aside. "Whatever. What Kariya said is right, though."

"Really?" All three of them asked in unison, ("I'm right?")

"Yeah. We can't make Tenma feel cornered again. We want him to be comfortable with us." Tsurugi nodded, making his way to his table that was behind Shinsuke's.

The striker made sure nobody was listening to their conversation before adding, "Tenma said that he'd tell us everything when he's ready. If being around us makes him uncomfortable, then he'll never tell us his past."

The three of them already knew what he meant by _"everything"_.

"Alright, that means we'll treat him like we always do. It doesn't matter what happened to him, Tenma is still Tenma." Aoi stated without hesitation.

Shinsuke smiled and nodded. "We're not going to look at him differently just because we learned a bit of his past. Tenma's our friend, he always will be."

Both Kariya and Tsurugi nodded, with the slightest smile (grin, in Kariya's case) seen on their faces. The four of them looked at each other and with one glance and a silent conversation, they knew what to do.

"By the way, where is Tenma?" Tsurugi now noticed that the brunet was nowhere in sight. And, the bell's about to ring any second.

"On the way, I think. He's probably going to be late." Shinsuke chuckled before adding, "Again."

Aoi shook her head and sighed. "At this rate, he's going to make a new record."

"Record? Of what?" Kariya raised his eyebrow.

Aoi chuckled and turned to the teal-haired boy. "Of coming to class late, of course."

Tsurugi was about to scoff at the name when he heard someone running in the hallway. He didn't hear shouting, but rather the gust of wind that someone is making from running so fast.

"What's that?" Shinsuke asked, feeling the slight shake from the floor.

"Sounds like someone running." Kariya commented. "Fast."

Aoi's smile turned to a fond smirk. "I think I know who that someone is."

"Yeah, me too." Shinsuke sighed, as though he wasn't smiling in excitement. "I can recognise that sound anywhere."

"How can you recognise someone just by their sound?" Kariya questioned them both.

The duo merely shrugged. "Side-effect of being his friend, I guess." Shinsuke said.

"Whose friend?" Kariya tilted his head, not getting what they meant. Tsurugi, on the other hand, knew that familiar sound too and he couldn't help but smile. "You'll see."

Kariya looked at them with a confused and annoyed face. The teal-haired boy pouted, "Like I said, who are you talking about?"

"Well, these footsteps-" Aoi started.

_Thumpthumpthumpthumpthumptump-_

"-could only belong to-"

_-thumpthumpthumpthumpthumptump-_

"-one person." Aoi smiled, glancing at the classroom door. The three boys beside her did the same, two in expectation and one in confusion.

The footsteps got louder and louder and louder, until suddenly the classroom door slammed open. Aoi and Shinsuke grinned, Kariya's mouth formed an 'o' in realization while Tsurugi just had a smile.

"Tenma."

Said boy was still gasping for breath as he ran a bit too fast on the way. He closed the door behind him and slowly walked towards his desk. The brunet noticed the four of them and flashed them a smile.

"Good morning, guys!" Tenma said cheerfully as he approached his table, which was beside Aoi's.

The four of them sent him a smile and simultaneously answered, "Good morning, Tenma."

"Sorry I came in a bit late, accidentally left my bag at home earlier." Tenma said sheepishly, putting said bag on the table.

All of them sweat-dropped. "Of course you did." Aoi sighed.

Tenma let out a laugh at that as he pulled out his chair and sat on it. "That's what Aki-nee said too!"

Tsurugi shook his head at the brunet, and couldn't help but notice that Tenma wasn't walking _to them_. Tsurugi mentally frowned, as that was proof that the brunet still didn't trust them, but he didn't show any of that and simply walked towards _him_. "So, did you finish your homework?"

Tenma's eyes widened. "Homework?"

"Yeah." Aoi nodded. She noticed Tsurugi's intention and was about to do the same when she suddenly remembered what happened at Okinawa, and decided not to. They don't want to make Tenma feel cornered again. "Maths homework, to be exact."

"S-Since when did we have Maths homework?" Tenma questioned nervously.

"A week ago, Tuesday I think." Shinsuke replied, doing the same as Aoi. Though, he was stopped by the warning look Tsurugi gave him.

"Wednesday." Kariya corrected him. The teal-haired boy looked at Tsurugi for permission, and after a few seconds the striker gave a small nod and didn't react as Kariya walked towards him and Tenma and pulled out a chair from the table in front of Tenma's.

"Wha-Why didn't any of you remind me?!" Tenma was a bit close to panicking at this point. He said so himself that he hates homework, but forgetting to do the homework itself is slightly worse.

"We did. I texted you last night." Aoi stated

"You know I don't check my messages at night, Aoi." Tenma groaned.

"Oh yeah, sorry. I'll call you next time."

"Yeah, that's better-WAIT! HELP ME WITH THE HOMEWORK, PLEASE!"

Tsurugi sighed and shook his head. "I knew this would happen." The striker muttered as he quickly grabbed his textbook from his bag and smacked it on Tenma's head. "Here."

Tenma winced at the sudden contact on his head and retrieved the textbook from the striker's hand. Then, the brunet looked at Tsurugi like a fan looking at an idol (albeit with his eyes a bit teary) and said, "THANK YOU, TSURUGI~!"

Tsurugi's eye twitched in annoyance. "Just do it already."

Tenma nodded and he quickly took out his own textbook and wrote in Tsurugi's answers.

"Wait, are you sure Tenma? That's _Tsurugi's_, you know." Aoi said as she pulled out her textbook from inside her bag. "All of it may be wrong-"

_"Hey."_

"-so use mine instead. I'm sure it's mostly right."

"Thanks, Aoi. I'll just compare both of your textbooks real quick, then I'll write down the answers." Tenma said, accepting her textbook and putting it beside Tsurugi's.

Aoi shrugged. "Alright, suit yourself."

Tsurugi frowned, but he didn't say anything. Shinsuke and Kariya glanced at each other and silently gave a thumbs-up. Aoi giggled, watching them all from her desk. Tenma tuned everyone out as he focused on doing his schoolwork (it's not homework anymore since he's doing it at school), so he was oblivious to the fond looks his friends were giving him.

Deep down, the four of them knew that this was the right way. They're being by Tenma's side, but they didn't corner him like back at Okinawa. They didn't make him confused or uncomfortable. It also wasn't a one-sided awkward conversation.

They're doing what they have always done. They're treating him the same, and they didn't make him the center of attention.

Tenma won't trust them that easily. That's a fact everyone knows. It'll take a while too.

Though they didn't know how to speed up the process, they now know what to do to actually make it work.

This is what Shindou had meant when he said, _"We'll always be by your side."_

It means being there when Tenma needs them, and never intending to leave.

That's what the four friends decided to do, and were determined to complete.

They'll laugh with him, they'll play with him, they'll study with him and they'll always be there for him.

They'll treat Tenma exactly the same like before.

Because to be honest, Tenma never actually changed. He's still the same Tenma. He's still _their_ Tenma.

And, they're going to keep it that way.

* * *

Outside the classroom, Shindou and Kirino silently watched as their juniors laughed and enjoyed their time together. Even the silent and stoic Tsurugi seemed like he was having fun.

Kirino smiled fondly at the sight. "I guess we were worried for nothing."

Shindou nodded. "It seemed like they found a good way to help him now."

"They care about Tenma, of course they did." Kirino chuckled.

"Well, I can't argue with that." Shindou admitted.

Because really though, it would make them complete idiots to not notice how all four of them were gazing at Tenma like he's the glue that holds them all together.

_But in a way,_ Shindou smiled. _He kind of is._

* * *

**A/N: Aaanddd, there you have it! Hope you enjoyed and tell me your opinions! And, if you have any advice, please do tell!**

**"Advice?"**

**Yeah. In many ways, I am still a newbie. I don't have any experience and all that stuff, so I may have written a lot of mistakes. So, if you have any advice you want to give me, then give it to me. JUST. DO. IT. YOU. ARE. GREAT!**

**"What does that have anything to do with advice?"**

**I don't know. Just wanted to say it, that's all. And, I'll try to update soon! I don't know if I can do it, but I will _try_ for you! Have a good day!**

**"And?"**

**Have a cookie! (::) (::) (::)**

**"That's more than one cookie."**

**You're just jealous that you don't get one.**

**"Not true...definitely not true."**


	21. Guys, please read this

**Guys, I am _so terribly sorry_ for the long wait**. And, I am sorry for the longer wait that will come.

For your information, this is my last year in school, meaning that I will have a lot of exams. And, I mean **a lot**. Like, once every week. This month, I have at least 10 exams. And next month...I don't even want to think about it. So, my schedule went from tight to suffocating. And, I really don't have the time to write a long chapter that this story needs.

So, I'm going to put this story on **HIATUS until May**. I will have a lot of free time in May, so I will finally be able to continue this story. After May 12th is my guess. Until then, I'm so sorry.

For those who followed my account here, you're probably going to say, "**Bullshit**. You've published three other stories in your "tight" schedule. One of them has 10 chapters and is already complete. Why can't you do the same for this one?"

Well, this story needs more information and research. It tells you about Tenma's past and how his father abused him. I need to do research on child abuse and how to treat children who were abused and all that stuff. When I told you that I didn't have the time, that wasn't a lie. Research takes time, and you need to be patient to gather all of the information you need. How can I do that when I have more important things to worry about?

I'm not saying that this story is not important. I'm saying that it's something I can do later, when I have some free time. But I can't do exams _later_. I can't graduate _later_. I can't put my education into a halt just because I want to finish a story that I can _definitely_ do later.

For the other stories that I published, they are ones that need little to no research at all. If you don't know what I'm talking about, they're One Piece stories. Inazuma Eleven isn't the only fandom that I joined. But like I said, I don't need to do a lot of research for the three stories. All I had to search for were their techniques and appearance, that's all. I can just log in to their Wikia page and find what I need there. So, it doesn't take long to make.

And, I only did this in my spare time. I couldn't write it all in a day. I had to write it one at a time. A few paragraphs at a time. Really, it's hard for me to write the stories too. Don't you see the large gap of my updates? But the information I need for TTBHS is a lot more, and I can't find it all in the Inazuma Eleven Wikia page. Research isn't an overnight thing. I can't have all the info I need in a flick of a finger.

This may sound like a sorry excuse for you all, but it's the truth. To be honest, I didn't really expect this story to go this far. And, I didn't expect a lot of people to like this story so much. So, all of you deserve my thanks. All of you deserve my apology. And, all of you deserve to know that this story won't be updated until May. I don't want all of you to keep waiting for this story without hearing anything from me. I don't want you to keep checking your Mail for updates of this story until May. You deserve better than that.

It's okay if you don't believe me. It's okay if you don't like this story anymore. This is just a heads-up, per say. I'm leaving the choice to you.

If you have any complaints, feel free to say it. But please know that writing isn't easy. Publishing chapters in a short period of time is not easy. It's not impossible, but it's just hard to do. Not everyone can do it. So, I have a lot of respect for authors that make it look easy. Because really, _it's not_.

But also know that this isn't a 'goodbye'. It's a 'see you next time'. I'm putting this chapter on hiatus, I'm not discontinuing it. Please keep that in mind.

Once again, I'm sorry for all of the false hope I've caused you all on waiting for an update. I don't know if I can make it up to you, but I can try. Don't worry, I'll definitely be back with this story.

**Until then, I'll see you guys in May. **

**P.S **It's not much, but...Um..have a cookie? **(::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::)**

If it makes you feel better, there's ice cream on top.


	22. May is near, but first-A VOTE!

**Hi, guys! It has been a while since I've talked to any of you, huh? Did you miss me? ****... ****NO!? Oh my God, I think my heart just shattered. Haha, kidding!**

**Anyway, we are nearing the end of my hiatus! Yeah, isn't that exciting? I told you I'd be back in service in May, and that's just a month away! Thankfully, I've already done most of my exams and all that's left for me to graduate is my national exam in May. One more exam aND I'LL BE FREEE! **

**Okay, back to topic. Since I'm going to do this story _real_ soon (Ahh, I'm so excited!), I need to talk about a few things first with you guys.**

**Well, I think I need to rewrite most of the chapters.**

**I've been reading some of the earlier ones and boy, did I cringe. Hahaha. ****It's not that they're bad or anything, but I could've done better. If you follow me, then you'll know that besides this story, I've done a few other ones as well. And, I'm proud to say that my writing has _slightly_ improved. I don't know to what extent, but I know that it's better than when I first started. **

**So when I read the chapters of this story, I wanted to fix the mistakes that I made first before actually continuing the story. I don't know if I'll rewrite every single chapter, but I definitely will do it for the first five or ten. Don't worry, I'm not going to change the plot for this story. It's still going to be the same. I'm just going to write it differently, that's all.**

**The problem is, I don't know if you guys want the chapters to be rewritten or not. Maybe some of you want to see it fixed, or maybe you just want me to continue the original story. Personally, I want to rewrite the chapters first, so that the story will be a bit better when I continue it. But, I'm not sure if you guys want that. So, I'm at a loss for what to do.**

**And this is the reason for this Author's Note. I want you guys to vote whether I should:**

**A) Rewrite the chapters first.**

**or**

**B) Just continue with the story and let the first chapters be. **

**Tell me your opinion by giving me a review or sending me a personal message, either one works. Give me a logical reason as well to why you chose that option. You have until April 6th next week to decide. After that, I will close the vote and decide on what to do depending on the results.**

**So, this story will depend on you. I'll be waiting for your votes! **

**(OMG, MAY IS REALLY CLOSE! I'M GOING TO START WRITING AGAIN, YEE-HAW!)**


	23. THE VOTE IS OVER!

**Alright, fellas. Yesterday, in my country, was April 6th. And, the deadline for this vote was April 6th...So, what does that mean?**

**It means...THE VOTE IS OVER! HOORAH! HOORAH! STREAMERS EVERYWHERE~!**

**Congratulations, we've reached the deadline for this vote together (that sounds cheesy _af_). A _berry_ big thank you to everyone who participated in the vote, I appreciate it a ton! Now, I will check all of your votes/reviews and read them one by one. I do not know how many of you voted and what you voted for, but hopefully it doesn't end in a tie. Because, neither of us wants to wait any longer right?**

**So, that's it. I'll tell you guys the results and what I'm going to be doing later on either today or tomorrow. Probably today, but let's just see. Fun fact; that was actually my friend's quote but I keep using it again and again. Is there a thing called a 'quote stealer'? If there is, then I'm probably it. Sorry guys, but we have a thief! Haha, joking.**

**Anyway, I'll see you later! :D**


	24. THE RESULTS ARE IN!

**Hello, everyone! I'm sorry it took a while for me to count the votes. I wasn't able to finish it earlier since I had other stuff to do. Even though my schedule's a bit lighter than before, it's still slightly hectic. May is when my schedule will be scot free, and it's still April. -_- (No offence to you guys who has the same name. I don't really have anything against April or May, so you can just chill).**

**But finally, I've counted all of your votes. Most of you sent me reviews, but there are some that sent their votes through PMs. Like I said, both could work; so it counts as well.**

**I told you guys to vote on either option A or B. But when I read the votes, turns out that you guys kind of made another option by yourselves. Basically, the additional option is a compromise of both option A and B (I didn't make any rules about that to begin with :P, so it's okay). **

**So, the additional option was _to do a bit of both_. The idea is, I'll spend a few days on writing a new chapter. And when it's done and published, I can use another few days to rewrite the previous chapters. That's the main gist of the option, I guess.**

**But anyway, let's get to the results! I am a Math person, meaning that I like Math (to your absolute _horror_ 0.0). So rather than telling the actual numbers, I'm gonna tell you the percentage of each vote. Percentage is interesting, if you think about it. I mean, even the shape (%) is a bit nice. **

**Wait, it kind of looks like two zeros being separated by a line. **

**That's...actually pretty sad.**

**RESULT :**

**The percentage for option A is...0% (What a bummer. And here, I was looking forward to that. Sorry, A. T^T).**

**The percentage for option B is...39% (Actually, the number was in decimals. But, I just rounded it off).**

**And the percentage for the additional option - let's call it option C - is...61% (Again, it's actually decimals. But also again, I rounded it off).**

**Soooo, the winner is...****...**

**_Option C_ (the option that wasn't _in_ the options in the first place)!**

**What an amazing rookie, just like Luffy! (hey, that rhymed!) A little rebellious, but it wins in the end...Now, where have I heard that before?**

**But, now you know what I'm going to do next month. I'm going to switch between doing a new chapter and rewriting an old one. Don't worry, I'll try not to focus on just one of them too much. I don't know just yet, but I'm probably going to start with the new chapter first (since you guys want it so much). Then after it's out, I'll switch to rewriting the previous chapters.**

**But in case I take too long later in May, I'm gonna start writing a bit of both from now. I won't be _really_ busy until the middle of April, so I have some time to think of the story plot and write the chapters. That way, when it's time to end my hiatus (that sounds a bit too formal, like I just said, "When it's time to end my presidency.". Like, what the hell.), the next chapter should be ready. But again, we'll see what happens. ****Therefore, please wait a ****_little_ bit longer for the chapters. **

**Once again, I'd like to thank everyone that participated in this vote! I also like to thank everyone that waited patiently for me to finish my exams first before continuing this story. You guys are awesome! Amazing! Wonderful! Thumbs up!**

**...I don't know how to make a thumbs up emoji. How do you make the thumb? I'm using a laptop keyboard and I have absolutely no idea of how to do it. Uh, I'm gonna switch to a smile instead. **

**:D **

**Ah, that's better.**


	25. First Step to Normality

**A/N: ALRIGHT, GUYS! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS?!**

**"No."**

**I AM OFFICIALLY _NOT_ IN HIATUS ANYMORE! YEAAHHHHHH! ****I just did my final exam today, and after this I'm free until I have to go back to school (HIGH SCHOOL!) in July. So yeah! But even after that, I will still spare some time to continue this story. **

**"Oh."**

**Just so you know, this is my first chapter after my hiatus. I already told you in the last chapter that I started to write this chapter bit by bit from last April, and I finished it sometime after that. So, I had this chapter sitting in my files for a pretty long time before I actually did my final exam. Along with that, I already re-wrote the first chapter too, so I'm going to publish that after this. **

**Two chapters in one day, both old and new.**

**I don't know what to say after this, so let's just cut to the chase! **

**...wait. Um, hello?**

**"What?"**

**You're a bit quiet today.**

**"Really?"**

**Yeah. It's probably in your nature to do so, but it's a little weird.**

**"We'll talk later. Right now, just say the disclaimer."**

***sighs* Alright. I disclaim everything except for my OCs. Happy now?**

**"Good."**

* * *

The sound of the bell rang throughout the school building. In response, most of the students in Tenma's classroom instantly closed their textbooks and went to grab their lunch boxes.

"Don't forget your homework tomorrow!" The teacher said one final time before she gathered her belongings and walked out of the class.

Tenma let out a sigh and leaned back on his seat. "_Finally_, I thought it'd never ring."

"The break is only for thirty minutes, Tenma." Aoi reminded as she stood up and walked towards him. "If you want to buy something in the canteen, you better hurry up."

"I think I'll pass. I don't think I will get out of that crazy mob of students alive today." Tenma stated before he pulled out a blue lunch box from his bag and showed it to Aoi. "Besides, Aki-nee packed me lunch earlier."

"Really?" Kariya sauntered over and stared at the box. "What is it?"

"Hm, let's see…" Tenma carefully opened the lid slightly and took a peek at what was inside before his eyes lit up and a smile emerged on his face. "It's my _karaage_ bento, my favourite!"

"Ooh, nice!" Shinsuke cried out. The boy mimicked Tenma and took a peek at his lunch box as well. "I got…chicken meatballs!"

"We're both eating our favourite lunches, Shinsuke!" Tenma grinned, raising his hand for a high-five.

Shinsuke nodded and returned the gesture. "Yeah, cheers!"

The other two friends, along with Hikaru and Tsurugi who just walked over, sweat-dropped at the duo.

"Are you two in elementary school or something?" Aoi shook her head in embarrassment at her friends' antics, earning a laugh from the two boys.

"What about you guys? Do you want to buy something?" Tenma asked the rest of his friends.

Hikaru shook his head. "No, I brought my own lunch today."

"Same here." Tsurugi said, showing them his lunchbox.

"Alright, then!" Tenma smiled before he quickly got up from his seat and snatched his lunch box with his right hand. "Come on, let's go to the roof!" The brunet said before he walked ahead of his friends, gesturing them to come along.

The first-years smiled at Tenma before all of them followed not far behind.

"Is this good, Tsurugi?" Aoi whispered to Tsurugi, both of them walking behind the group.

Tsurugi glanced at Tenma's smiling face as the boy chatted with Hikaru and smiled. "Yeah. This is a good start."

A relieved smile graced Aoi's face at that. "Alright. Then, let's keep this up."

* * *

"Oh yeah, Kariya." Tenma said just as he took another bite of his lunch. "About your video game…"

Shinsuke raised an eyebrow. "Video game?"

"Yeah." Hikaru nodded. "He bought one the day before the match." The purple-haired teenager took a sip from his water bottle before he turned to Kariya and asked, "Have you played it yet?"

Kariya let out a flustered groan. "No! When I was about to log in, the electricity just _had_ to go out!" He hastily took a bite of his lunch and munched on it before adding, "Eet ded't come bek on-"

"_Swallow_."

Kariya frowned at the navy-haired striker and grumbled under his breath about something that none of them could make out before doing what he was told. "It didn't come back on until about ten. And, I was already asleep."

Aoi snickered. "How tragic."

Kariya's cheeks turned slightly red and the boy quickly turned his head away. "S-Shut up! I was looking forward to that game!"

"What is it about, anyway?" Tenma asked with a nonplussed expression.

Simultaneously, Kariya's eyes lit up at the change of subject and the teal-haired teenager grinned. "You'll love it, Tenma! It's about people killing each other, but instead of bullets, they use soccer balls!"

Tenma and Shinsuke automatically imagined the video game with Kariya's description before both of them shuddered.

"And, what would I love about _that_?" Tenma asked incredulously.

"I told you, the _soccer_ balls! You love soccer, don't you?" Kariya emphasized.

"Yes, but not when they're used as bullets!"

"And it doesn't change the fact that it sounds scary!" Shinsuke cried out as he tugged onto his blue headband in fear.

Kariya laughed at their reactions before shaking his hand dismissively. "No, they're not actually playing soccer. They just use tiny soccer balls as bullets, that's all."

Tenma stared at Kariya with a bewildered look before saying, "How's _that_ supposed to help?"

Hikaru couldn't help but chuckle. "I said the same thing."

Aoi brought a hand towards her chin and tried to imagine the video game herself. "I can't imagine a tiny soccer ball as a bullet, though."

"Think of it as the size of your phone chains, Aoi." Kariya pointed out. The defender had once seen what the girl kept in her school bag, which made him spend the rest of the day wondering where the hell she had bought _a mini Gouenji _\- and it actually looked pretty accurate!

Not that he wanted it for himself; but it would've been some good blackmail material for a certain Tsurugi - since he's practically a die-hard fan of the guy (not that Kariya believed the striker would _ever_ admit that).

Comprehension washed over the girl instantly. "Ah, now I see."

"But why soccer balls, though?" Shinsuke spoke up. "Last I checked; soccer couldn't kill."

"The force of the gun makes the soccer ball as fast as a real bullet. It's close to the speed of sound, or at least that's what I think." Hikaru explained to the small defender. "And, the creators just wanted to try something new."

"Sound's much faster than a bullet?" Tenma questioned.

"Yeah." Tsurugi replied after swallowing his food. "It's the fastest thing in the world."

"That's cool!" Shinsuke beamed, his eyes lighting up in excitement. "Is there anything faster than sound?"

Simultaneously, an answer appeared inside Aoi's mind and the girl slowly smirked. "Yeah. Kariya's scream whenever he sees something scary."

Said boy abruptly choked on his food and let out a few coughs before he sent Aoi an offended look. "Hey, I am _not_ scared of anything!"

"Oh, really?" Tenma teased knowingly.

"Yeah, I am a fearless type of man." Kariya nodded, crossing his arms.

"I see." Tenma said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. The brunet had a sudden urge to make his friend prove what he just said, and his brain offered him an idea in response. So, the captain nudged his friend beside him and quietly whispered, "Hear me out, Tsurugi."

If Tsurugi was surprised at Tenma's sudden request (and you can bet that he was), he didn't show it. Instead, the striker nodded and listened as Tenma quickly explained slash whispered his idea. At the end of it, the striker had a tough time hiding his smile. "Alright."

Then, Tsurugi silently placed a hand on Kariya's shoulder - who was, conveniently, sitting beside him - and acted according to Tenma's idea as he let out his best intimidating aura yet. "Is that so, Kariya Masaki?" Tsurugi whispered, his golden eyes shining bright due to the dark aura around them.

Instantly, Kariya felt a shiver down his spine and he slowly turned around at the person behind him. The second his eyes caught the sight of a terrifying Tsurugi, his face went ghostly pale and a very girly scream made its way out of Kariya's throat. _"EEEEEEEKKKKKKKKK!"_

All of the teenagers outright laughed at the scene, with most of them doubling over while holding their stomachs. "You're right, Aoi!" Shinsuke gasped out between laughs. "Kariya's scream is faster than sound!"

Hearing the statement, Hikaru laughed even more. "Technically, his scream _is_ sound, Shinsuke-kun!"

But, their laughter was suddenly interrupted by the sound of a ringing bell from the school building. "Oh no, the bell!" Tenma cried out and looked back at his half empty lunch box. "Guys, help me finish this!"

"With pleasure." Shinsuke was at Tenma's side in an instant and started to literally _inhale_ Tenma's food.

"AH! Don't suck it all up, Shinsuke! What are you, a _vacuum_?!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Shindou, Kirino and Sangoku were walking down the hallway. The three of them had already finished eating their lunch, and were now returing to their own separate classes.

"Shindou, what should we do?" Kirino asked his friend with a slightly grim face. "I know I've asked this more than once, but eventually we have to do _something_."

Shindou didn't need to be told of what Kirino was implying. "I know. But, we have to be patient. We want Tenma to be comfortable with us first. After that, we can move."

"But we don't have much time." Sangoku pointed out behind them.

"Tenma comes first." Shindou responded without hesitation. The ex-captain gave Sangoku a sideway glance and smiled. "He's the one we're trying to save, after all."

"He's right." All three students halted and turned around at the new voice in their conversation as they saw a blue-haired boy sauntering over to them.

"Kurama." Kirino mumbled, recognizing the teenager.

"Besides, that man's far away from Tenma right now." Kurama added, his eyes visually darkening at the mention of that person. "We don't need to rush. If we do, we'll make the same mistake again."

All of them winced as the memory of what happened inside the clubroom appeared inside their minds. "You're right." Sangoku agreed, not wanting to do or witness it ever again.

Kurama nodded, placing his hands behind his head in a somewhat relaxed manner. "Even so, forgiving is like second nature to Tenma."

"What do you mean?" Shindou asked; his face puzzled.

"Well he easily forgave Tsurugi, who literally beat him up the first time they met." Kurama replied, casting a glance at Shindou before stating further, "Then he forgave Shindou, who had gone rough on him even though he was a first year _and_ a newbie."

Shindou instantly recalled how he treated Tenma when he'd joined the soccer club and pursed his lips in guilt. He was really frustrated at the time, yet he took it all out on the innocent Tenma.

Kurama noticed his friend's reaction to his statement but merely proceeded. "And…he forgave me, the one who'd been badmouthing him ever since day one." The teenager muttered as he lowered his head, his bangs covering his downcast eyes.

"Kurama, Shindou…" Both Kirino and Sangoku's eyes softened in sympathy at the two boys, while also understanding themselves. They _were_ one of the ones who treated Tenma badly too, after all.

At that moment, Kurama broke out of his daze and quickly shook his head. "Anyway, I'm not saying what we did was tolerable. No, it's far from that. I'm saying that he's generally not a bad guy." Kurama gave them a light shrug before adding, "He was patient with us, and we should be patient with him."

Kirino couldn't help but scoff at that. "Oh, we're patient alright. That kid's really a handful."

The rest of the teenagers chuckled, lightening the sour mood around them. "I can't argue with that." Sangoku said just as his smile turned a bit fond. "But, aren't we all?"

Shindou couldn't help but smirk. "Like captain, like team I guess."

"So, what do you suggest we do?" Kirino questioned again. "We need to earn Tenma's trust before anything else."

"I've got that covered." Shindou replied, pulling out a small notebook from his left pocket and handing it to Kirino, who wore a confused expression before he took it.

"A notebook?" Sangoku arched his eyebrows.

Shindou nodded. "Yeah, read it."

Both Kurama and Sangoku peered over Kirino's shoulder as the pink-haired teenager opened the notebook and examined it.

* * *

_**"How to make Tenma trust us again"**_

_(Source: inazumahow)_

**_1\. Think about the situation._**

_Why are you fighting? This is an important first step—your apology will seem pointless if you can't explain what you are apologizing for, and may lead to making the fight worse (we've already done that. Check)._

**_2\. Talk to him._**

_Tell him how you feel about what happened. Tell him that you want to be friends again, and point out certain things that you miss about them. If necessary show your emotions by crying or hugging (double check)._

_Even under the worst of circumstances an honest face-to-face conversation may be all that is needed to reestablish a bond (triple check)._

**_3\. Take the initiative._**

_Be open about wanting to fix your friendship. Friends should not play (mind) games with each other. If you truly love this person and want them to stay your friend, be open about your feelings towards them._

_Say you are **sorry** (checky checky check). You have to mean it however; the person will be able to tell if you're being sincere or not. It's the best word to use to explain your feelings. Leave it as a message on his answering machine if he has not answered your phone calls._

**_4\. Be calm and open to what your friend is saying._**

_Getting defensive will cause your friend to do the same, which will make it hard for the two of you to work things out (oh, has Tsurugi done **that** alright)._

**_5\. Create an open discussion._**

_When possible, and if the other friend agrees, try to sit down for coffee or something with them and talk things out (or just go and play soccer). Wait at least three days to do this because the person will probably still be upset if earlier. It really depends though on how intense the fight was. When your friend speaks, listen._

_Speak quietly and from the heart. Allow them to feel the pain that you feel, and the loneliness you Tenma have endured since the break up of the friendship._

_Explain how much you value and miss your friendship, and that you would like to speak to them in person._

_Crack a joke. Friends love jokes (I don't know if Tenma loves it, but I think he does). Life's not a whole lot without your good friend there (babbling about soccer to no end). When the tension starts to ease, and you get details out of the way, lighten the mood. Be careful though. Do not make a joke referring to the fight…ever. (If you do, I'll **kill** you)_

**_6\. Step into their shoes._**

_Try to sit back and see another perspective besides your own. This is a situation where one needs to think critically. It's not simple to try to understand other people. Think about recent events that have gone on in your friend's life. Try to understand the reason that your relationship got to such a heated level._

_Part of gaining understanding of another person's perspective may involve speaking to mutual friends or family members of that person. Be careful though, because a mutual friend (or a very overprotective butler) can be dangerous to talk to._

**_7\. Learn from what happened._**

_Never regret it, because in life you learn and grow stronger from mistakes you have made and problems you have gone through._

**_8\. Show him that you are sorry._**

_This goes beyond the conversation that the two of you have. Whether or not they choose to forgive you, show your friend that you did not want to hurt him, and that you truly regret whatever you did. Go out of your way to put their needs in front of yours until you feel that things are on the mend._

**_9\. Gradually repair your friendship._**

_Start talking to them more and more; don't go for the whole thing at once._

_ ** \- Shindou Takuto**_

* * *

The three friends sweat-dropped to both how detailed Shindou's list was and the hilarious comments here and there. "Uh…wow, Shindou." Kirino mumbled, not knowing what to say. "Y-You really went all out on this one."

Shindou didn't pick up the hidden message and merely smiled, obviously proud of his list. "Yeah, I looked up a few sites in the web yesterday. Some of them had the same content and some don't. But, I got the main gist of it."

"You didn't need to write down every single word though, Shindou." Sangoku noted.

Kurama nodded beside him. "Yeah, 'gist' doesn't mean 'without exception'."

Shindou just gave them a shrug. "I thought you guys needed to know. I'll show this to the others later."

Kirino reviewed the list one last time and quickly memorized it all in his head before giving it back to his friend. "So, Shindou. When we _do_ make a move, what will we do first?"

"Research." Shindou replied immediately, accepting the notebook back. "We need information to why that man treated Tenma like that."

Simultaneously, Kurama balled his fists and his eyes narrowed dangerously at the mention of that man again. "I swear, if the reason's not logical at all, I'm going to beat. Him. Up."

"What if it's logical?" Kirino asked, though he highly doubted it.

"I'd still beat him up."

Sangoku placed a hand on his junior's shoulder and nodded with a similar dark expression. "The feeling's mutual."

"I'll ask Hayami later to search the Internet for any kind of lead." Shindou continued. "The family tree, the history, anything that can be useful."

"When Tenma trusts us again, maybe we should try asking him." Kirino suggested.

"Be gentle, though, and take it slow." Sangoku advised him. "This isn't something he'd like to talk about."

Kirino nodded with a frown. "I know. I don't want to force him."

"We'll think of something." Shindou reassured his friends. "It'll work out in the end."

Kurama couldn't help but smirk at the familiar saying. "You say that sentence a lot nowadays."

Shindou, now realizing what he just said, let out a fond chuckle and simply answered, "What can I say? Tenma's motto has rubbed off on all of us."

* * *

**A/N: For your information, I got the contents of Shindou's list from a site called WikiHow. But, I added a few parts and made it _inazumahow_ instead.**

**"How creative."**

**That sounds a bit offensive, don't you think? Anyway, a BIG thank you to everyone who waited patiently for me to continue writing this story. I'm so terribly sorry for making you all wait so long. But, I'll make it up by writing new chapters that you'll hopefully like.**

**"I'll hold you to that."**

**And, I'm sorry if this chapter doesn't show that much of a progress. But, when you want to gain someone's trust back, you need to take it slow. Usually it takes a while before they trust you again, but I think Tenma will trust them a bit sooner than most.**

**"It seems like you did your research."**

**Well, of course! I need to learn about these stuff before I write them.**

**"So, when should we expect an update?"**

**I don't know. Maybe a week or so? I don't have a schedule, but I'll try to make the next chapter in a week. I'll also publish re-written chapters too.**

**"Well, don't make us wait for too long."**

**I know. And, um...voice?**

**"Yeah?"**

**I'm glad that I'm talking to you again. You were lonely when I was on hiatus, weren't you?**

**"...shut up, you idiot."**

**AH, you're back!**


	26. No Overnight Progress

**Alright, guys! This is the...26th chapter!? ****Wow, that's a lot of chapters :o**

**"Did you have any idea how long you-"**

**I know, and some of you guys are probably sick and tired of me apologizing every time I updated, so I'm not actually gonna say it. But please know that I truly mean it. **

**"Explanation?"**

**Sometimes, things just don't go the way you plan it to be.**

**"...I can't argue with that."**

**You can't, can you? Oh, wait! I forgot about replying the mail! **

**"Can't have that, can we?"**

**Kaz-rin: I have nothing to say other than_ THANK YOU VERY MUCH!_ T^T**

**TokusatsuLuv: Your welcome! Hmm, I don't know yet. Let's find out, shall we? ;)**

**Lemonade Sherbet-2015: Thank you, Kitty! :D**

**AmyGolden1104: Hello to you, too! Well, Shindou just wanted to be prepared, I guess. Hopefully, you'll know soon! :3**

**Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter! And, I don't own any of the characters except for my own, which is not in this chapter.**

* * *

Shindou was paying attention to their teacher's detailed explanation of Biology when a small and crumpled paper ball hit him in the shoulder and landed on his desk. Shindou stared at it in curiosity and glanced up to make sure the teacher wasn't looking before he slowly opened the crumpled paper.

_"__Should we gather everyone else later? –K"_

Shindou frowned and looked at Kirino, who was motioning for him to reply with his eyebrows. Shindou couldn't help but crack a smile at his friend and he quickly wrote a reply on the back of the paper. Then he carefully threw the paper at Kirino, making sure that the teacher doesn't notice the exchange.

Kirino got the paper and opened it.

_"__You're asking a lot of questions lately."_

Kirino rolled his eyes and quickly replied back, throwing it quietly at Shindou's desk again. Shindou caught it and read the new message again.

_"__Well in my defense, you usually have the answers. Anyway, yes or no?"_

_"__No, don't do it just yet. We don't want to go behind Tenma's back by secretly having a rendezvous without him. That'll mess up the whole plan."_

_"__But if we don't, you won't be able to tell them about your list."_

_"__I will, just not in person."_

Kirino turned to Shindou with a curious frown, but when the ex-captain gestured him to his cell phone, the pink-haired boy's mouth formed an 'o' and he immediately understood.

_"__Alright, make sure to send one to me then."_

_"__I thought you already memorized it earlier."_

_"__I did, but just in case. You know how my memory is."_

_"__Should I send this to the first-years as well?"_

_"__Up to you. But, I think they don't need you telling them. They're already doing those steps right now."_

_"__You're right. Our juniors are pretty smart, after all.-"_

Kirino glanced at Shindou, who was looking a bit _too_ smug and proud for his liking.

_"__-But, I have a feeling that I should send it to one of them at least."_

_"__Just send it to Tsurugi, if you want. He may seem the calmest, but deep down he's afraid of messing it up again (just like you). That list might be a useful guide to him, as well as everyone else."_

Shindou sent Kirino a 'what-do-you-mean-by-that' look. Kirino shrugged, grinning with no shame at all. It was Shindou's turn to roll his eyes.

_"__Alright. Hopefully, everything turns out alright."_

Kirino stared at the paper and he glanced at Shindou with a sad, yet hopeful smile.

_"__Hopefully."_

* * *

"Ahh, finally! School is _over_!" Kariya shouted to the heavens, stretching his arms into the air as he and the rest of his friends walked away from their school building.

"Just for today, though, Kariya," Hikaru reminded him. "We have to come again tomorrow."

"It still means that no one's gonna force me to study for at least another ten hours," Kariya answered, walking with his hands behind his head. "And that's a win for me."

Aoi giggled, her lips quirking upwards into a small smile. "So, any plans?" The teenage girl asked her friends, glancing at the sun in the sky. "There's no soccer practice until tomorrow so we still have some free time until it gets dark."

Tenma hummed. "Usually, I'd just go to the riverbank and play soccer, but…I'm not in the mood," The brunet stated, lightly shrugging. "How about the arcade instead?"

Fortunately, none of them commented on Tenma's unusual answer. Though, it took everything in them _not_ to stagger in their steps and stare at the brunet, dumbfounded, because of how it sounded absolutely _wrong_ to their ears, even more so since it came from _Tenma_.

"That's a good idea!" Shinsuke smiled, his inner storm of astonishment carefully hidden away. "I haven't been there for _ages_."

Aoi nodded, quickly recovering as well. "Me too. I heard there's a new game there."

Tenma's smile shifted to a bright grin and he quickly glanced at the rest of his friends. "How about you guys? Are you free?"

"Yeah. I have nothing scheduled." Tsurugi replied, smiling at the brunet.

"Same here," Hikaru added. "There's nothing to do at home anyway."

Kariya merely shrugged again. "Meh, I have some time to kill."

"Great!" Tenma exclaimed before he walked closer to a certain teal-haired kid with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "By the way, Kariya, it's been a while since we went all out."

"Oh, you're on!" Kariya shouted, pointing a finger at Tenma. "I am _not_ gonna lose, this time, Tenma! I'm in it to win it!"

* * *

A few yards away from the group, Shindou and Kirino just got out of the Raimon building and were walking to the front entrance together.

"I've already sent the list to the others," Shindou informed as he typed something into his cell phone.

"Really?" Kirino asked, smiling. "What did they say?"

Shindou shrugged, glancing at the phone before putting it back into his pocket. "Pretty much the same thing you guys said."

Hearing the answer, Kirino couldn't help but chuckle. "Well, I'm not gonna lie. You did go a bit overboard, Shindou."

"Maybe," Shindou smiled, not denying the statement. "But, it's worth it."

And how could Kirino not smile at that? "You're right."

"Hey, Shindou! Kirino!" The duo turned around at the sound of their names being called and saw two of their friends walking over to them.

"Hamano, Hayami," Shindou smiled as said boys caught up to them. "Hi to you too."

"I didn't see you two earlier," Kirino stated. "Where have you been?"

Hamano rubbed his neck sheepishly while Hayami merely sighed. "Hamano was sent to detention and he _had_ to drag me along."

"Hey, it's more fun when you're with me," Hamano joked at Hayami, turning to Shindou as he held a cell phone in front of them. "By the way, I got the text, Shindou. Took me a few minutes to read it all."

The wavy-haired boy smiled. "Thanks for reading it, Hamano."

"But, Shindou-kun," Hayami interrupted. "You could've sent us the conclusion of the whole thing and-"

"Yeah, yeah. I know, Hayami. I got that a lot today," Shindou cut him off, ignoring a few chuckles from Kirino. "But, better safe than sorry."

"Anyway, you guys get the gist, right?" Kirino inquired.

Instantly, Hamano's joking face disappeared and the midfielder stared at Kirino sternly. "Of course. We want to earn Tenma's trust again, so we're completely serious on this."

"I second that," Hayami added, nodding.

Shindou and Kirino let out a breath they didn't know they were holding. "That's good," Kirino stated.

"How are the others handling it?" Hamano asked.

"So far, so good," Shindou notified. "Everyone understood and they already knew what to do."

Hamano chuckled. "With your detailed list, Shindou, it's kinda hard _not_ to."

"Did you send it to the first-years?" Hayami questioned just as they walked out of the school grounds.

"Yup," Shindou replied. "Just Tsurugi, though."

"Good, 'cause that guy needs it," Hamano stated.

Kirino's lips quirked upwards. "Is he really that obvious?"

"After being his friend for a few months, you kinda notice the little things," Hamano put his hands behind his head and added, "From what I saw, he's _really_ tense."

"Yeah," Hayami nodded. "Even I can see that."

Both Shindou and Kirino's eyebrows shot up. If you had known Hayami for a long time, then you'd know that _that_ spoke volumes.

"I mean, being guarded and careful is good and all," Hamano shrugged, walking down the pavement. "But in this case, less is more."

* * *

Tsurugi let out a small sneeze as he leaned back on one of the games in the arcade. The navy-haired silently groaned, knowing that someone must've been talking about him because he normally _never_ sneezes.

Anyway, Tsurugi focused back on the text Shindou had sent to him. The striker wanted to facepalm just by looking at it. He knew that his senior had good intentions, but apparently Shindou didn't know the meaning of 'limitation'.

Who in the world would send a 650-word list (he counted) consisting of 9 steps about earning Tenma's trust to almost _everyone_ in the soccer club (he read the receivers). Honestly, he'd be surprised if Shindou's phone _didn't_ break down from storage overload.

And why out of all of the first-years, it was _ONLY_ sent to him!?

Tsurugi had checked the receivers, _twice_, and it was official. None of his friends from his year got the text. Aoi, Shinsuke, Hikaru nor Kariya's names weren't there!

There was only – and he meant, _only_ – 'TSURUGI KYOUSUKE'.

Oh, the striker was going to have a _talk_ with Shindou tomorrow, because he could already _feel_ some of his seniors laughing at him right at this second.

Well, there goes his dignity – or what was left of it, anyway.

But as he put that problem aside and read the list again, Tsurugi felt some of his frustration fading away. Not including the unnecessary comments, the list was actually pretty useful.

Before he got this text, Tsurugi had been going by instinct, which was infamous for _usually_ being right in the end. Even so, a part of him was always uncertain of how it was going to turn out.

But after reading the list, Tsurugi was more certain and confident that he was going to do alright and he won't mess anything up. Because now, Tsurugi knew _exactly_ what to do. And all of that was thanks to Shindou and his one hell of a list.

Though, Tsurugi'd _never_ say that to anyone…ever.

Meanwhile, a few feet away from the striker, Kariya had slumped against a certain arcade game, surrounded by a gloomy and miserable aura. "How is this possible…" the defender muttered dejectedly.

"Wow, Kariya," Shinsuke said, glancing at how many losses Kariya had on the screen. "I didn't know you were such a sore loser."

"I am not!" Kariya immediately shot up, seemingly coming back to life just for the sole purpose of glaring at Shinsuke. "Just so you know, I was at the top of my league when I was in elementary school!"

"Well, the league's a bit higher this time," Hikaru stated, giving Kariya a small smile and a pat on the shoulder. "You might wanna catch up."

Kariya groaned dramatically and slowly slumped back against the arcade game. "The universe is so cruel…"

"Hey, Tsurugi!" Tenma called out the navy-haired boy from his seat, making said boy's head perk up towards him. "Kariya is out of the game here-"

"_I AM __**NOT**__!_"

"-so you wanna go for a round?" Tenma asked, smirking.

"Sure," Tsurugi smiled and closed his cell phone, slipping it into his pocket. Then, he made his way over to Kariya's seat and stood before the teal-haired boy. "Kariya, move over."

Kariya crossed his arms and pouted. "Hmph, why don't you make me?"

Tsurugi's smile faltered and he sent a death glare towards the teenager as a dark aura formed around the two, subconsciously recreating the atmosphere at lunch earlier.

Sweat began to form on Kariya's forehead and the defender's face quickly paled as white as paper. With the speed of sound, Kariya swiftly stood up from his seat and offered the empty spot to the striker. "I-It's all yours, Tsurugi-kun!" Kariya stuttered, giving Tsurugi a nervous and scared smile. "E-Ehehehe…he."

Tsurugi's glare dissipated and he gave Kariya a small 'thanks' as he sat down in front of the arcade game. Kariya let out a breath of relief and started to saunter over to where Shinsuke, Aoi, and Hikaru were, a few yards away.

"Come to think of it, I've never gone against you before, Tsurugi," Tenma smiled from his seat as he leaned sideways to see the striker. "Let's see what you can do."

Tsurugi moved the game controls and quickly picked his avatar and name while Tenma already picked his. A moment later, two avatars were seen on both of their screens and the game was going to start.

_[Prepare for BATTLE, players.]_

_[Ready…]_

"I'm not gonna hold back, Tenma," Tsurugi smirked at the brunet with his hands already on the controls.

_[Set…]_

Tenma had a small, mischievous smirk on his face when he answered, "I don't expect you to."

_[__**GO!**__]_

* * *

"Not bad, Tsurugi. A few more hits and you could've beaten me," Tenma notified as he walked home alongside Tsurugi and Aoi. Kariya, Shinsuke, and Hikaru had gone home a few minutes ago.

Tsurugi shrugged. "I've gone to the arcade a couple of times. I liked that game in particular, so I kept playing it."

"Yeah, I could see you do that," Tenma nodded, recalling the alternate universe he had gone to with Fei, where he was bewildered to find Tsurugi playing at the arcade instead on the soccer field.

The brunet's smile turned into a smirk again before saying, "But, I'm not going to go easy next time."

Tsurugi's lips quirked upwards and the striker nodded in return. "Just the way I like it."

Just then, the two boys heard a small giggle come out from Aoi. Tenma turned to the girl and tilted his head. "What is it, Aoi?"

"You two are so competitive sometimes," Aoi stated. "I bet you forgot that I was even here."

"No, I remember. Why would I forget?" Tenma asked her, bemused. Both Aoi and Tsurugi resisted the urge to roll their eyes at the dense brunet. But Tenma was oblivious about it and continued on. "Anyway, of course we are! We're rivals, after all," Tenma said, elbowing Tsurugi slightly. "Right, Tsurugi?"

Tsurugi froze for a split second before his smile got a bit wider and he nodded, oblivious to the way his shoulders subtly relaxed in relief. "Right."

Aoi noticed it, though, and her features softened. "That's good to hear," She said just as the three teenagers walked to a two-way intersection.

"Well, this is where we part ways. See you tomorrow, boys!" Aoi shouted, walking towards the opposite direction from Tenma and Tsurugi.

"Bye, Aoi!" Tenma called back, waving his hand along with Tsurugi, though the latter waved his hand a bit less energetically. After that, the duo proceeded to walk towards the other direction.

"Wait a minute," Tenma said abruptly, turning to Tsurugi with a questioning look. "I thought your house was the other way?"

Tsurugi merely shrugged again. "Like I said, I have nothing scheduled. Might as well walk you to your house."

Another reason was because he had been following the directions in Shindou's list, but there was no need to inform Tenma about that piece of information.

Tenma sent the striker a skeptical stare, but then he must've seen something in Tsurugi that satisfied him because the brunet gave him a smile and said, "Thanks."

Tsurugi smiled back. "No problem." After that, the duo continued to walk in comfortable silence.

A few minutes later, both of them successfully made it to the front of Tenma's manor.

"There's practice tomorrow," Tsurugi reminded as Tenma opened the front gate and walked in, the striker following close behind. "If you want, you can still skip it and take a break."

"You _actually_ believe I'm gonna do that?" Tenma asked him incredulously, making his way towards the door. "I haven't played soccer for at least two days, Tsurugi. _Two days._ If the waiting's not gonna kill me, the temptation will."

Tsurugi couldn't help but chuckle. "You're right. You _are_ our stubborn captain, after all."

Tenma let out a laugh in response. "Well, I can't argue with that."

When Tenma finally stood in front of the door and placed his hand on the doorknob, he glanced back at Tsurugi, who had halted before the steps. Tenma opened his mouth to say something, but then a flicker of hesitation flashed on his face and the brunet seemed to have thought better of it.

Instead, Tenma gave his friend a small smile and said, "Thanks again, Tsurugi. Good night."

Tsurugi's eyes softened and the striker understood. One day wasn't enough to recover broken trust, after all. He'd have to wait for a while before he gets an invitation for dinner.

With that in mind, Tsurugi smiled and nodded. "Good night, Tenma," The striker said as he started to turn around and walk back home. "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah," Tenma muttered, turning around to open the manor door. "See you tomorrow."

* * *

Back at a certain building at Raimon, a man was sitting behind his desk, his hand rubbing his closed eyes. On top of the desk were a bunch of folders and files, containing various kinds of information.

The man's clothes were slightly worse for wear, obviously, he had been treating it with close to no care for the whole day. The man let out a weary sigh just as a knock was heard from the door. He looked up just in time to see a person he could recognize from miles away.

"Kidou."

Said person merely scrutinized the man with a blank expression. "Endou."

"I assume Otonashi has already told you," Endou muttered, slowly leaning back in his chair.

Kidou walked closer to the brunet and nodded. "Yeah."

Endou absentmindedly tapped his fingers on the wooden desk before informing, "I'm not going to tell Onigawara-san yet. If I do, Tenma will take it as another sign of betrayal."

"That's the last thing we need," Kidou stated, standing in front of Endou and the desk.

Then, the room went silent. Endou stared at the files and folders, though judging by his eyes, the brunet wasn't really there. Meanwhile, Kidou didn't move from his position, waiting patiently for his friend to start.

Finally, after several minutes, Endou decided to break the silence.

"Kidou…I never expected it," Endou admitted, resting his head on his right palm while he did gesturing motions with his left. "Tenma was, _is_ the brightest person in the team. He's the one that lifts their spirits up, no matter what the situation is. He's the calm before and after the storm. He's the one that brings the team together. He's the team's _center_."

Kidou half-smiled nostalgically at Endou's explanation. "Just like you."

Endou blinked before he let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, I guess he's the younger me right now," Endou mumbled. But then, his somber mood quickly returned. "But…I never _thought_ that he was…"

"No one did, Endou," Kidou notified as he slowly walked over to stand beside Endou. "No one would've guessed, considering who Tenma is."

"Who we _thought_ Tenma is," Endou corrected grimly. "But if I had noticed sooner, then I _could've_-"

"It's not your fault, Endou," Kidou cut him off, placing a hand comfortingly on Endou's shoulder. "I'm sure Tenma'd say the same."

Instead of feeling comforted, though, Endou grew even more somber.

"Kidou, I'm Raimon's coach," The brunet exclaimed loudly. "I'm supposed to look after them. I'm supposed to make sure everyone is alright. I'm supposed to make sure everyone's happy. It's my _job_."

Endou let out another weary sigh and ran his hand through his messy, brown hair before proceeding. "Yet I never thought to look at Tenma and think twice, 'cause I was _sure_ he's alright. I was sure he was _fine_…But Kidou," Endou turned to his friend beside him and gave him one of the worst crestfallen expressions Kidou had ever seen. "…I was wrong."

Kidou pursed his lips and balled his other hand so tight, his knuckles went white. "So was I, Endou," Kidou murmured quietly as he squeezed Endou's shoulder slightly tighter. "So was I."

* * *

**Alright, that's another wrap! I tried to do something different for this chapter, and I wanted to show at least _some_ progress about the trust thing. So, I made Shindou send the list to almost everyone and there were some moments between Tsurugi and Tenma that could be signs of progress if you think about it.**

**"Oh."**

**Also, I noticed that some of the adults haven't appeared yet so I squeezed in a scene with Endou and Kidou at the end. **

**"Ooh."**

**If any of you didn't notice before, what Kidou said was a reference to Captain America: Civil War. Don't ask** **why;** **I just love Marvel right now.**

**"Oooh."**

**Are you not going to say anything else?**

**"Hmm...I could tell you how long it was since you last updated and how many of the readers waited for this chapter to come. But, I guess you already know."**

**Hey. I just graduated middle school, turned 15 last week, and learned of my scores from my previous exams. That's not meant as an excuse for not updating, but...actually, it has no purpose at all. I only wanted to say a good comeback from that...and failed.**

**"Miserably."**

_**Thank you **_**for that, Loki. It's not at all disturbing.**


End file.
